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I contacted E today to let her know what was going on and to ask that she tell the front desk people not to let this aid come back there in case she should pull this stunt again. I told her that the owner of the company is working on getting a replacement but after what had happened with the OT woman in Smyrna this really got me triggered, so I want to take precautions so that she can’t further tamper with this working relationship, as it’s very important to keep a safe environment so that my hand can regain full function and that I feel safe enough to complete the process. She was very nice about it and I don’t think she was conscious of how D had influenced her to increase the intensity of the massage because she was very distracting, but now that she knows her motive, we can take steps to keep her from interfering. I hope my appointment tomorrow goes smoothly.

Still no luck with getting through to the good aid who went to Florida who is supposed to have been back by now (she’d said 2-3 weeks). I left a message on her voicemail to let her know we need her to come back ASAP because I’m in a bad position.

I read a message board last night for CNAs sponsored by Indeed and they were very angry about the working conditions. It is scary to think that they carry around that level of rage and that as people with disabilities we could be the easiest target. It’s no wonder that abuse and neglect is so prevalent, but low pay is only part of the problem. There needs to be better screening and recruitment to target more responsible and stable people.

We have to do something about that in this country because ultimately it’s the clients who bear the brunt. It is not all that different from police and their taking out their anger on those they deal with on a daily basis, but this here is a silent epidemic rarely covered in the media, except when a particularly heinous case comes to light.

If we don’t take care of our most vulnerable with love, respect, and compassion then there is real reason to fear for the future, as every one of us will at some point need this kind of help (unless we die suddenly with no period of disability beforehand, and that is becoming more rare as people tend to live longer with lower quality of life for years.)