Originally Posted by lefthanded

I turn 62 in January. At my age my mom was recovering from colon cancer surgery, having just got her ostomy reversed. And then she was off, traveling everywhere from Cape Cod to Hawaii. She even did a little hiking with me when she visited years later. I am lucky if I get to see my grandkids 3 or 4 times a year, who only live 3 hours away, because travel and pain control are so difficult. Staying the night is a nightmare, as the guestroom is on the second floor, and the bathroom is not conveniently arranged for all my G.I. madness. All I want to do is be a grandma . . . I have even given up hopes of taking my grandson on his first hike on Rainier. I just want to enjoy my grandkids, and I am often too out of it from pain control to even do that . . .

Okay . . . didn't mean to hijack thread. Personal pity party over. We are never prepared to meet the emotional challenges that come with the physical ones . . . and I think they are the more difficult of the two.