Posted 11/10/2015 9:13 PM (GMT -5)
Hi HW Family,
I'm going to try to make this as cohesive and coherent as possible. I've talked about my dad before on the forum- within the past couple of years (no one is exactly sure when) he developed a drug and alcohol problem and since then became very reclusive, lost pretty much all social etiquette and is so self involved and self absorbed that every conversation somehow relates back to him. Doesn't matter what it's about. Could be about having your period, something men don't experience, and guaranteed the conversation will circle back to him about some experience he had at some point regarding menstruation.
My dad is also a hypochondriac. WebMD is used more than Google on his computer. He called me last week telling me there has been blood in his bowel movements and that he has been scared because of this. He went to the PCP and they sent him home saying it was most likely hemorrhoids or some fissure that would heal on its own. After he got sent him, there was more and more blood which prompted the PCP to schedule a colonoscopy at the end of the month just to be sure that nothing was seriously wrong.
Now, on a side note, my grandparents passed away last February and March. We were waiting to have a memorial because we wanted it to be on their anniversary, which is this Saturday, November 14. Family is flying in from all over and we are gathering to celebrate the lives of two beautiful souls-- my grandma and grandpa. Tomorrow I was scheduled to pick up my cousin and her boyfriend at the airport at 8 am, and we were to make the two hour drive to Palm Springs as we have reserved a house for all of the family to stay this week.
I get a phone call from my dad a few days ago saying he purposefully moved up his colonoscopy to tomorrow because he's nervous and that I am the one responsible for driving him home afterwards since he cannot due to the anesthesia. He has no one else due to his major social isolation and inability to maintain steady relationships. I find myself frustrated that he picked the date that is supposed to be about my other side of the family, but can't obviously be too upset because he is my dad and this could be very serious. After making other airport arrangements for my cousin + boyfriend, I received another phone call tonight from him not ASKING but TELLING me that he forgot his magnesium citrate (a super powerful laxative that cleans ya out before they go up your rear) and that I will need to go to the pharmacy and pick him up two bottles of this stuff and bring it to him. (He lives a good 30 minutes away and it is 6:30 PM my time). Not sure why he can't do it himself, but once again I feel inconvenienced and I know he is doing this just for attention because everyone is gathering together to focus on something else for a change--the death of my grandparents.
I feel horrible for even feeling this way about my own father, but I am just getting so sick of it and am really reaching my limit with him.