Sandwiched
If you’ve been reading my column for any length of time, you’ll notice the topics vary from serious, to stressful, to downright silly. I think those adjectives perfectly describe the life of anyone in the sandwich generation.
After the bad news that’s hit us all this week, I’m going for silly. Today’s topic is the Mystery of the Missing Boost, which almost sounds like a Nancy Drew novel. Unlike Nancy, I’ve not solved this one, but I’m working on it.
My mother has had one Boost per day in her diet for years now. If you’re not familiar with Boost, it is a nutritional drink containing protein, vitamins and minerals – and a lot of sugar.
Like many seniors, Mom doesn’t eat well. The reasons for this vary according to the National Institute of Health. They include changes to the digestive system, hormonal changes, disease, pain, changes to the sense of smell, taste and vision, and a decreased need for energy. Digestive system issues also contribute to declining appetite.
Most experts recommend only one Boost each day to avoid ingesting too many vitamins, minerals, and, of course, sugar. Last year I set Mom up to receive one case of Boost every three weeks from Amazon. A case contains 24 bottles, so I figured this would give her about three extras in each shipment.
Apparently, my math is even worse than I thought. Mom’s Boost keeps disappearing, or so she claims. I can’t tell you how many times she’s called me over the last six months swearing to me that she’s out of the stuff.
“Mom, you JUST got a case of 24 less than two weeks ago,” I’ll typically reply.
“Well, there’s none in this apartment,” she’ll say.
I then have to call the front desk of her facility to see if someone can help her find the recent shipment. Most of the time they can’t find it and thanks to COVID, I can’t go over and look myself, which adds to the fun.
“Are you just drinking just ONE a day? That’s all you’re supposed to drink, Mom,” I’ll say when she invariably calls again.
“That’s all I’m drinking, just one,” she’ll claim.
Uh-huh. Right. I know my Little Miss Sweet Tooth. I think Boost has become like ice cream for Mom and she’s chugging multiple bottles a day.
When I complain to my husband John about this situation and how it drives me crazy, he simply says, “Amy, she’s 88.” Sigh.
Starting today, I’ve set Mom up to get a shipment of the stuff every TWO weeks now. That’s approximately 48 a month. At this rate she’ll be able to stack the boxes around her apartment to create little forts.
We’ll see if this helps with the “mystery.” Maybe my training from reading all those Nancy Drew novels as a kid will finally pay off.