everything's moving too fast when I was just hoping to get Mom a little stability (in more ways than one.) the middle of the night phone call wasn't the end of the world but she was taken from assisted living (where there was precious little assistance I might go on about) to emergency room. Long distance I got a friend of hers and a friend of mine to spend a few separate hours with her in the all day emergency room where I have to say the care and the communication with family and the assistance in further arrangements was wonderful. But this evening she's moved from emergency room to acute rehab for at least a week. Acute rehab because medicare won't pay for subacute rehab unless you're coming from a 3 or more day hospital admission but they will pay for the more expensive. And this is probably exactly what she needs - the assessment and assistance in learning to use the tools, but here's the frustrating part - the implication from the social worker and from the nursing staff at the assisted living place that the rehab is a transition to a nursing home instead of a place to learn to be more independent. I don't know if I'm just in denial or right to be angry. Should I be a more aggressive caregiver? Should we give up on the assisted care facility? I don't understand why? If she can't walk without falling, then can't she use a wheelchair? There are plenty of people there in wheelchairs. And this sudden increase in falling, couldn't it have been a drug reaction. She just started Amantadine a week ago, and increased the dosage a few days ago. The nursing staff at the residence said that she's been falling for a week and even more over the weekend and Sunday night and all day Monday she was nauseous. After what she said was a great meal Sunday evening, she didn't eat or take any medication for most of yesterday. And then did last night and then fell again. It seems others I've read have had that and worse reactions to drugs, so maybe it's not just inevitable deterioration. I did talk to her neurologist yesterday, before all the drama, and he seemed discouraged that the medication weren't helping more, but he specifically said he wasn't giving up yet, there was more to try. All the talk today though was pretty discouraging for Mom and me and my more distant sister and brother. I am going to Boston at the crack of dawn tomorrow. Hope I can be more effective if I'm there. Sorry to be so long-winded, but on the lighter side - am I the only one who's wondered about whether there could be a constructive connection between the Lorena Bobbit chain saws and the testicle cells?