Nearly 5 weeks ago now, my other half did something to her back whilst getting ready for work.  For as long as I can remember, her back has always been a problem but nothing has been quite as severe as this incident.  I found one morning her stuck on all fours, sweating with the pain and on the verge of passing out.  Knowing her pain threshold is pretty high, I was more than a little alarmed and frantically dialled for the paramedics whilst she groaned ‘no doctors! no doctors!’ before wretching with another spasm.  Being a doctor herself, I know how stubborn she can be about receiving treatment so I duly ignored her pleas.

I was less than helpful in this challenging situation. The best I could do was dab her forehead and stuff pillows around her for support until the paramedic arrived, at which point I did what I do best, I made a cup of tea and started to clean and apologise profusely for the state of the house.

The paramedic left an hour later, then the doctor arrived with a look of concern on his face, prescribed a cocktail of drugs and signed her off for 4 weeks.    She has yet to go back to work and I have been chastised for my impatience because, quite frankly, it is hideously dull when your other half is unable to do anything more than crawl from sofa to bed, to bathroom and back to bed.  Having said all that, she is now on the mend and mobile enough to have short, easy walks. I no longer have to play full time nurse, taxi driver, chef, cleaner and waiter, and I shall never take our mobility for granted again!  Hats off to those people who are full time carers.  It’s hard work.