Do you take care of your spouse? Does he or she take care of you? What exactly does that mean? There are many ways of caring for each other from everyday little things to a more literal sense such as when one spouse is ill or injured.
I had oral surgery yesterday. It was, to be honest, awful. I awoke in the middle of the surgery. I was only half-awake because of the pills they had given me besides the gas, but I must say, it was somewhat traumatic. It was also very painful.
I needed stitches and my mouth didn’t seem to want to stop bleeding afterward. I was nauseous and loopy on pain medication. My cheek began to swell and to bruise. I was pretty miserable.
It began snowing while I was in surgery and as soon as we got home; my husband received a call to go pick up the kids early from school. Also, our pipes were frozen, and the power kept going out.
My husband was outside in all of 11 degrees working on the pipes. I was inside near tears wishing he could take care of me. He always does and I need that. I didn’t want to make more demands on him, but I missed his gentle reassurance. I thought about him out in the cold, knowing he was tired and hungry besides being cold, and feeling bad because I couldn’t help him so he could get done quicker to come inside and get warm.
It was just a stressful day all around. When he came inside, the first thing he did was come to check on me and see if I needed anything. I took his cold hands, and gently rubbed them to warm them. Neither one of us said a word, we just looked into each other’s eyes.
All of this made me think, “What if something worse happened and we couldn’t take care of each other?” What if it were more than temporary discomfort and minor setbacks? What if it were something more serious? Even though the medication was still at work, I was able to realize that I need to take better care of myself so that I’ll be healthy enough to take care of my husband.
Even when things are rough, something good can still come of it (but I’m still thankful that today is a better day!).
Marriage and the Illness of a Spouse
The State of Marriage can affect the State of Health