Living with Linda full time means you get to really see how common things are on a day by day basis.
One phrase that comes up again and again is: “Sister, can I have a tablet?”
Linda is asking for medication, paracetamol usually, for… well sometimes it’s a headache, sometimes tummy pain, sometimes joint pains.
Occasionally these pains can apparently be quite localised, other times they are more vague – but the distress seems just as real.
How on earth do you judge the severity of someone else’s pain?
Reading that Williams Syndrome symptoms include joint pain and abdominal pain means it is entirely possible these pains are real… but are they? I guess you might face the same challenges when working or living with any adult who has a learning disability, not just Williams Syndrome.
I promise, I don’t dispense paracetamol like sweets. Honest, I don’t even dispense sweets like sweets, but sometimes it’s just so difficult to know.
How do you know when it’s just normal or when to go back to your doctor?