Stubborn Old Lady!
By anniepa
@anniepa (27955)
United States
October 6, 2007 11:54pm CST
Have you found that people get more stubborn as they get older? I mean, totally bull-headed, I'll do it my way or the highway kind of stubborn! My mom, bless her, will be 91 in November and she's a hoot at times. She has to take iron pills because her hemo-globin count was dangerously low awhile back and she had to be given several quarts of blood, so now a home-health nurse comes and takes some blood once a month and she has to take a daily supplement. A few months ago she stopped taking them (and lied to me about it) because she had a hard time getting them out of those plastic card thingies so I put them all in a bottle for her and this time when I bought them, I found them in a bottle so she can open it easily, but when she missed taking them for just a few days her blood count dropped again and since the doctor didn't know she hadn't been taking them he wanted to send her to a specialist and for more extensive tests. No way!! And she told my daughter she went 90 years without taking iron pills so she didn't need to take them now, either. Do you have any stories to share about our beloved elderly folks?
Annie
2 people like this
8 responses
@weehihi (132)
• Philippines
7 Oct 07
oh i know what you mean..hehehe my grandmother is bullheaded too..she thinks she's still strong enough to do the things she's been doing 80 yrs ago..hehehe but i think it's part of getting old..they dont want to acknowledge that they're kind of useless..they felt useless you know and they hate that..so sometimes even if it makes you angry because they're too stubborn, you just have to give in...
@carolbee (16230)
• United States
7 Oct 07
I do see some similarities with my husband and the way he acts about the trash and shower doors. Keep in mind that he is younger than I am. Not by much but I am still his elder!
The trash only goes out in the morning no matter how full it gets during the evening. If I start to take it out he tells me that it can wait until morning. Am sure most people, who eat meals out, very often have leftovers. At times it gets pushed in the back of the ole fridge and it's forgotten. If I put it in the trash in the evening, it sits in our kitchen trashcan all night. By morning, whew! We can afford an extra trashbag but it's not the way he likes to handle the trash.
Next crazy thing is the shower doors. If I ask him to leave them open after showering, he closes them. Water collects around the base of the shower and causes mold. It's very damp in that particular bathroom.
We don't have any pill issues as he is as healthy as a pig (tired of using the word horse!)
1 person likes this
@sarahruthbeth22 (43143)
• United States
7 Oct 07
Does your mother's birthday fall between Nov 1st-19th? If so, she is a scorpio and therefore is very stubborn.I know because my mom was a scorpio.When her mind was made up , that was it. I am a stubborn young lady.I was stubborn when I was born. So I guess I will get worse as I get older. Good luck with your mom. I hope she changes her mind and starts taking the pills. Maybe there is a way to give her the medicine in another form? Ask her doctor.Good Luck.
1 person likes this
@prEttyNbluE (299)
• Philippines
8 Oct 07
hi there! i can relate with your story. i am with my grandmother and grandfather who are in their late 80s. everyday, i have to repeat things so that they won't forget. If i suggest something, they will insist to their old practices which are very irrelevant. I always tell my grandfather that he should quit smoking but he always insist that he's doing that since he was a teenager so why should he stop? Instead of arguing, i just let them do what they want and just see to it that they are well taken cared of... :-)
@kiobug (2250)
• United States
8 Oct 07
I dont have personal story but I think some elderly people want to remain independent. Relying on someone or something for their live might scare them or frustrate them. I think not matter how old you get you can still have the omg im getting old thought. I hope she remains well. : )
@xiaovivien (154)
• China
8 Oct 07
I think when people became old,they will more and more like a child,they need good care,they want many people take care of them,and pay attention to them,they usually feel lonely,they need love,if they are more stubborn,and do some stubborn things,maybe they wish that their children can pay more attention to them.
@CinderInMySoul (4717)
• United States
7 Oct 07
i think its a requirement of being elderly! the older you get the more stubborn and bull-headed you have to be in order to survive!
i take care of my grandmother, who is an 84yr old diabetic. she "decides" at least 3 times a year that she doesnt need to take her medicine..and doesnt tell me or anyone else until she hasnt had them for over a week and is beginning to complain about not being able to control her sugar levels.
i THINK she believes her meds are a "take when you're having a problem" type of pill and not a maintenance type of pill!! and no matter how i or the doctor try to explain it..she just won't listen.
we were taking her blood pressure everyday too. then after it being steady and lower like the doctor wanted, she decided we didnt need to keep track anymore...and what can i say? i cant FORCE her to. and its not like i can "sneak" the test lol.
she is a sweet thing, but omg can the woman be stubborn as all hell when she has decided something!
@worldwise1 (14885)
• United States
7 Oct 07
I did notice that my mother became more obstinate during the last few years of her life, anniepa. Whenever one of us would try to tell her something that she should do she would snap back at us, "I'm your mother-you're not mine!" It got to be a private joke among us because we knew she was just being stubborn.
