My 84 year grandmother took a nasty spill last week, falling and bleeding over a gallon of blood into her bottom. She's had a couple of strokes and other minor issues, so she is on blood thinners, which makes her bleed large amounts of blood whenever she gets a cut or bruise. Well this was definitely the case this time, as she bled out 4 units of blood. As time progressed, she started getting pale and extremely light-headed because the rest of the body was not getting sufficient amounts of blood. My uncle and his family, who were in from Arkansas, found my grandmother passed out in her bedroom on Thursday. He immediately took her to the hospital.
Now, for those of you who don't know my grandmother, she is a warrior. She is still practicing medicine full time at her small, rural private practice in Wilmore, KY. She is the most amazing woman I have ever met. She graduated as the only female in her Vanderbilt Medical School class, finished the curriculum at the Brussels School of Tropical Disease where the tests were oral exams taken only in French, and then whisked her family away to Africa, serving the locals at a hospital in the middle-of-nowhere Congo for 10 years. Get the picture?
So here she is, for the first time in her life, helpless, lying in the hospital, bleeding insane amounts of blood, and unable to talk due to some of the medicine they had her on. After two days, she started making improvements, but they were still keeping her in the hospital to monitor her heart and raise her blood counts. On Saturday afternoon, my aunt and uncle and 2 cousins were in the hospital room with her hanging out and the heart monitor started to beep loudly, meaning her heart rate was getting too low. My uncle casually mentioned it to my grandmother, just to make sure she was ok. My grandmother slowly sat up, looked over at the monitor, then passed out. My 16 year old cousin started to cry and my uncle panicked and started to scream, "Mom! Mom!"
My grandmother then opened her eyes, smiled, winked, and said, "got ya!"
My grandma is a punk. And I love it.
8 comments:
Hahahahha, just when my anger was engulfing me about your bomb diggity grandma hurting herself, I found myself laughing and hoping I have her wit at her age! Lord willing I make it there. To Grandma Corbitt: Dance on, Sista!
O Grandma Corbitt!!!! That witty one she is!
elisabeth,
just wanted to say "toi aussi tu peux y arriver avec ton francais" but i also wanted to say i really enjoyed reading about your grandmother. i hope she'll feel better soon.
have a good week, lawrence
wow is all i can say!!
this is hysterical!
not the part that she fell, but the joke part! :)
EJ
somehow I found your blog & was teary that you had Cros on a link : ) thank you. I have enjoyed reading your posts & often they make me smile & laugh & miss you here at UK. this post is amazing. YOUR GRANDMA IS amazing!!!! Will pray for her!!! Hope to see you sometime when you are in Lex!
Smiles,
Meredith
E.J. I read the title of your Blog and immediately declared to myself shenanigans. As I read the background of your grandmother I found myself saying well that is impressive, not better then my grandmother but still impressive. Then I get to part where she "punked" you Uncle... Priceless. I am not sure if your grandmother is indeed cooler than mine, having never met the woman it is hard to judge, but with this story I do believe A can make a case can be made. Although saying most likely borders on heresy.
what a sweet post about your grandma. :) i had a lot of fun getting to know her a little bit last week.
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