And ANOTHER weird thing happened...
By ElicBxn
@ElicBxn (63608)
United States
April 10, 2012 7:36pm CST
So I was sent shopping for Maggiepie again today. And everything was well and good UNTIL I get to the register and the lady in front of me is trying (and trying and TRYING) to pay with a declined card. So much so that it locks up the register. This gave me lots of time to watch the little scene taking place at the front of the store.
There was a lady talking to this other lady who was sitting on a bench.
"Where do you live?" the one standing asked.
"I don't know."
"How did you get here?"
"I don't know."
"Did you ride the bus here?"
"I don't know."
Finally EMS and the Fire department arrived and started checking her. They asked her to stand and walk about 2 steps to the gurney and she said, "No."
"Can you stand?" the EMT asked.
"No."
At this point the lady stepped forward and said. "Come on Kim, you walked over here, you can do it."
They were taking vitals. One of them told another: "Her blood sugar is 89."
The cashier asked me: "He said her blood sugar is 89, is that bad?"
"No, that's pretty good," I replied.
Yeah, I know that kind of stuff.
The cashier then told me that the woman could only remember her name. She had been sitting there talking to this other lady (who I suspect was a plain clothed security lady for Walmart) for several minutes.
They had her on the gurney before I left, but the ambulance was still there when I got out of the parking lot.
Just so you know, she was thin, but clean, so I don't really think she was a homeless person. Could've been drugs, but it was only 11 a.m. and she wasn't acting drunk, so I don't think it was alcohol.
No, again, I have no idea what was going on, or the result... I leave that to your imagination!
Maybe you can spin a tale for me? I have my own ideas, but they are probably wrong.
5 people like this
16 responses
@bellis716 (4799)
• United States
11 Apr 12
It sounds to me like a person with Alzheimer's disease who has wandered away from a care facility. My mother did that once and was found by a staff member a block and half away from the facility. She was headed "home". Sometimes the patients would slip out when a visitor was coming in.
3 people like this
@GardenGerty (160721)
• United States
11 Apr 12
We have a friend on this site whose mother is 52 and is fully in dementia.
@ElicBxn (63608)
• United States
11 Apr 12
she looked pretty young, tho I know that Alzheimer's affects younger people, but I really suspect that she might've had some kind of psychotic event or had been at training at the Goodwill facility nearby and had the breakdown and left it.
Austin has the State Hospital here, so she might've been from there.
1 person likes this
@mentalward (14690)
• United States
11 Apr 12
When my mother had cancer (but before we knew about it) she began to lose memory like that. She told me once (also before she was diagnosed) that she was driving when suddenly she didn't know where she was, how she got there or where she was going. She had to pull over to the side of the road for five minutes or so before she remembered where she was, went home right away and called me.
She had worsening episodes after that until the day came when she didn't remember anything at all and I took her to the ER where she was diagnosed with terminal cancer that had already spread to her brain and was severely affecting her memory.
This woman in Walmart could very well have the same issue or it could be one of her medications. I've heard of certain medications causing this if either they're new and they don't know their reaction to it or they've mistakenly taken too much of a certain med. Whichever it is, I feel for the poor woman but am very glad that the Walmart security was alert enough to call for medical assistance. Whew!
Man do you ever have some 'interesting' days!!! 
@ElicBxn (63608)
• United States
11 Apr 12
I knew a lady with brain cancer. I also worked with a good friend of hers for a while. She told me that she had her good days and bad days until she no longer had any good ones. On her good ones, she'd recognize my co-worker, on her bad ones she was comatose, and then there were the in between days where she thought all kinds of stuff including that she had been abducted by aliens...
2 people like this
@danishcanadian (28953)
• Canada
11 Apr 12
Was she slurring her speech somewhat? Hubby's diabetic, and we were told that his BG levels should stay between 90-125. 89 isn't bad, a little below normal, but not bad. However, I've seen him in the mid-range of normal, and still acting diabetic. I have gotten to the point where I can hear it in his voice if he coughs, speaks, sneezes, whatever. BTW 90-125 is 5-7 in Canadian, with numbers moving up .1 .2 .3 etc.
2 people like this
@ElicBxn (63608)
• United States
11 Apr 12
no, her voice was clear, she wasn't acting in anyway impaired, just confused
and really 89 isn't bad, below 70 is where you really don't want to be, unless you are diabetic... I run in the mid-upper 70's... I really have to watch for low blood sugars.
1 person likes this
@Lakota12 (42600)
• United States
11 Apr 12
SOunds like alshimers and she had wonderered awayfrom her care taker they were probably looking fo rher up and down the road we had a feller like that back in Tenn he would get out of the house and walk up and down the hyway and he didnt know his name cops wwwould get him and take him bac k home
2 people like this
@laken02 (3065)
• United States
11 Apr 12
i woukld almost bet she is bi polar all the signs are there as well.. i have bi polar and i have in the past not known who the presient was or waht year it was that is why all the questions to see her mental stability.. thank God i get help as soon as mine hits and know all the bad signs.. she was probably taken to a mnental hospital if her vitals were good and no helath issues but checked out first i hope she gets ok as any illness is bad.. unles it was a stoke but all poimt s to brain .. and head .. issues.. take care.. i will pray for her as well..
3 people like this
@rewardsinlife (1132)
• United States
11 Apr 12
Well where I come from this is not an uncommon experience at all, and this person could just be simply crazy. Another reason could be that she has amnesia, or possibly dementia and can't remember how to get back home. Dementia or Alzhimers is probably more likely since she can remember her name but is also combative in going anywhere or knowing anything else. Hoepfully at the end of day they will be able to figure out her situation and what family is available to her.
2 people like this
@ElicBxn (63608)
• United States
11 Apr 12
She really wasn't combative, I've seen that at the place mom was, she was just like she didn't remember she could stand up and walk.
Austin has the State Hospital, its possible she was a patient there, going to Goodwill for training and had an event.
It is possible that she has amnesia, but I suspect she had a "breakdown" event.
@KrauseHome (36448)
• United States
12 Apr 12
Well, unless here Blood sugars were normally a lot higher than 89, and she had taken too much insulin and crashing, 89 is not bad. I know for me sometimes that is considered lower and has caused problems. Sounds like there was something else going on besides this, and probably a good thing they were taking her in to be checked. I just would be a little concerned if I was her friend, and really hope that everything turns out Ok.
1 person likes this
@Loverbear (4918)
• United States
11 Apr 12
It could have been a TIA or a stroke. I know a woman who had a stroke and was functional but couldn't remember much after the stroke. I tried to get the husband to take the woman to the ER, but he waited for four days before he did anything.
I was told I had a TIA, which I kind of thought because I couldn't understand what I was trying to read. Everything else made sense except for the written word. It was a very strange feeling!
1 person likes this
@ElicBxn (63608)
• United States
11 Apr 12
She smiled fine, no lopsidedness to it, but that doesn't mean it couldn't have been one of those silent ones. Or, I guess a TIA (had to look that up BTW). I really don't know, but she went off to the hospital so that's probably for the best, don't ya guess.
@fulllydisturbed (122)
• India
11 Apr 12
I dont know what it is but i do think it could be Alzheimer as lot of them are telling like that. But anyway i would like to thank you for sharing this as i got a subject to a make a short story out of it to present to a director to make a short film. Sorry no offense.
1 person likes this
@fulllydisturbed (122)
• India
12 Apr 12
I would like to express my gratitude to Elic Behexan for sharing such a valuable subject which inspired me to create a story out of it for a short film. I hope its good.... ;)
1 person likes this
@Rosekitty (19368)
• San Marcos, Texas
11 Apr 12
Well i do know when i'm stressed and haven't eaten anything i tend to forget more so it does seem like that might be an issue..plus if she was trying to use the declined card like that one wonders how long it wasn't working?..Was she trying to buy food? or could you not tell?..Brain injury like was mentioned since Austin Hosp. nearby maybe but you also said she talked fine..Just hope all was well and whoever she lives with found her and she is back home resting..
1 person likes this
@ElicBxn (63608)
• United States
11 Apr 12
No, she wasn't the one who was trying to use the card, that woman left, but only AFTER seizing up the register, giving me time to watch the events going on.
The State Hospital is a mental hospital, rather than an "injury" type hospital. I hope she made it back to where ever she was from okay... but you know I see these type of things and get to wondering what's it all about...
So, I share it with you guys! and drive you guys crazy too! 
@Rosekitty (19368)
• San Marcos, Texas
11 Apr 12
Aww got confused and reread..now i see she wasn't the one using the card..see old age is kicking in..haha
1 person likes this
@cerebellum (3863)
• United States
12 Apr 12
It sounds like she was suffering from Alzheimers disease. She might even be from an assisted living place and got out without anyone realizing she was gone. She was obviously having a "bad day" and couldn't remember much of anything. At least she got help before she got hurt.
@honest_efforts100 (1607)
• India
22 Jul 12
The lady on the bench must have things going wrong somewhere. It is not normal to have person sited on the bench and remembers nothing on how he/she got there. May be she had a memory lapse after a terrible thing hard happened to her. It also seems that you are not the only guy who had noticed her which tells she was disturbed too.
1 person likes this
@ElicBxn (63608)
• United States
22 Jul 12
Oh, it was pretty obvious, especially since it was taking place only about 10 feet from me and they weren't particularly quiet. Not that they were yelling, but....
I do know some people who are so self absorbed they wouldn't have noticed it, but they probably would've also been on the phone...
@BarBaraPrz (47388)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
11 Apr 12
Early onset Alzheimer's?
Aliens abducted her brain?
Brain tumor?
1 person likes this
@jerzgirl (9291)
• United States
11 Apr 12
Sounds like an Alzheimers episode to me. Something similar happened to my grandmother when she was flying to Arizona to visit my aunt. She completely forgot where she was or where she was going and missed her connecting flight. If she hadn't taken all her documents out of her purse, they wouldn't have known who she was. Physically, she was otherwise fine. But, her diseased brain decided to take a leave of absence midway through her trip.
1 person likes this
