Happy Monday! Organization: Medical Mom Style
This week will likely be a busy one, as we are heading to Edmonton for an appointment with Arden’s pediatrician later in the week. After our last trip back to the city, I reorganized and created some new systems for travel, including how we pack. Hopefully this will make it easier to grab-and-go with the majority of Arden’s necessities.
For the longest time, I had convinced myself that I was more of a “Type B” personality. I envy those people that can take a laid-back and carefree approach to life. I wanted so desperately to BE one of those people. As a teacher, I definitely take more of a relaxed, organic approach to learning. I enjoy it when children have the opportunity to explore, make mistakes, and develop personal strategies for success. However, my classroom setup, marking, and routines always needed to be carefully planned. After years of suffering from anxiety, trying desperately to be “laid-back,” lately I have found that what keeps me sane is being organized.
After having Arden, I quickly realized that there was going to be A LOT of information coming my way. As someone who has always kept a journal and taken notes, I began to take daily notes during Arden’s hospital stay. I filled up multiple journals during the 8 months we were in the hospital. However, one of the things that bothered me during that time, was the fact that I couldn’t organize everything exactly how I wanted. I know…in that regard I am a little bit of a control freak. When September rolled around, my teacher self was dying to put items in bins and label something. I couldn’t wait to get home so that we would have full control of how Arden’s medical supplies were organized.
When we got home in December, I had my grade partner bring home some of the carts that I had purchased for my classroom, so that I could use them for Arden’s supplies. Brodi purchased a label maker for us, and I went to town getting everything organized into the perfect spots. Arden’s medical supplies are now organized in drawers for maximum accessibility and convenience. I have made multiple lists, information pages and cheat sheets for our night time caregivers. His vent cart is planned out so that we have everything we need on it and it’s convenient to move from room to room. I have created a Google calendar filled with appointments and med and feed reminders, as well as a physical agenda book for a family planner. There are places in the kitchen for dirty/clean syringes and a spot to air dry equipment. All of his meds and feeds get made, labeled, and placed in a specific bins in our refrigerator. Arden has his own drawer in our filing cabinet, where there are numerous files containing everything from caregiver timesheets to specialist information for each of the medical teams that work with him. All of the tasks that we need to do in a day can happen in a timely fashion because we are prepared and organized for them.
It has taken effort and planning, but our house has absolutely become our sanctuary. It’s where we spend all of our days, and it functions in a way that works for us. There are many things in this life that we can’t control. Especially with Arden, plans can sometimes change very quickly depending on how he’s doing. But at least when those surprises pop up, the “gottas” are already done. This time, I am much less anxious about traveling back to the city. It takes a lot of work, and it can be stressful, but at least I know that we have systems in place so that everything runs as smoothly as possible.
XO, Rayel