To add more, my mom went to take a shower, kept asking me questions nonchalantly about what doors to close, kept wanting to go back into rooms I had closed for things that made sense but also didn't, like bandaids, phone charger (there's no outlet in the hallway), bread for sandwiches, etc
So eventually 45 minutes pass, me and my guys are in the hallway, I've been ignoring extra questions from my mom to make sure all the meds and animals are in our designated shelter spots, I've unstacked things from in front of her door so I can force it closed, and my mom, who cannot walk (was struggling significantly even with a walker), was on the other end of the house trying and struggling to grab the bread? When the tornado had just happened to take a little extra time (thank God) and so I was like "WHAT ARE YOU DOING" (because she was previously in the hallway in her Designated Spot) and she was like. "I am getting the bread for our sandwiches :)"
I stopped her there, grabbed the thing she wanted, and forced her to go. She got angry with me for rushing her and telling her to quit asking questions and was (verbally only) combative and uncooperative, but I got her into the hallway, sat down to chill out, and she started organizing her bags of supplies and food.
As in, making nonstop noises with bags for several minutes until I had told her politely three times to please stop making noises so we could have a moment of silence (I was overstimulated).
It was very, very strange.
She's still capable of learning so after the scariest parts passed, and she was back at her place in the dining room, I stood there and explained to her that she's not a mom of TODDLERS anymore* and that if I wake her up in the future saying we need to go to shelter, but that she has time to pee and take her meds, that means GET READY TO SHELTER AND DON'T WASTE TIME.
*I was trying to explain it from whatever angle she might have been trying for, because she doesn't like feeling like she failed or did anything wrong and also empathetic responses work better -- I was trying to give a little safety discussion, not have a fight
I also told her that it's incredibly rare to get more than 8 minutes of warning time on a storm like that, and the fact that the threat WAS persisting for more than 8 minutes was a big deal.
When I asked her why she showered, to try to understand that perspective, she told me she was worried the tornado would make her have to go to the hospital, and she wanted to be sure she was clean for that? To which my sister made a joke about how the doctors would care sooooo much about our mom's vagina cleanliness if she was hit by a tornado, and I told her, "Hey, if you get hit by a tornado, you're going to be covered in wood, brick, asbestos, and insulation from the house... not to mention mud, rocks, rain, blood, etc. No offense but the shower wouldn't have been needed by then, you'd actually really need another one."
To which she said, "But I'd be clean UNDER the layer of tornado stuff."
Which left me explaining, briefly, that the nurses and doctors probably wouldn't even be seeing her immediately unless she had a severe, critical injury, and likely it'd be someone next to her in the hospital or one of us tending to her wounds immediately, because obviously the hospital was about to be VERY full after they got the power back on in it -- hell, even BEFORE then, as the OTHER hospital took a near-direct hit and might be delayed for all we know.
It was very bizarre and stressful, because usually after my animals are in place, I'm sweating, ready to sit down, and am the last person ready unless someone able enough nearby was able to help out. Instead I check off all my internal, irreplaceable friends, look up, realize my mom is in the kitchen and that it takes her 2 or 3 minutes to get to the hallway (in a walk that takes me 5-10 seconds if I'm taking my time), and have to convince her while she's (verbally only) trying to argue her way out of it....
So, anyway next time, as soon as the tornado watch is issues, and I saw the storm coming a week in advanced, AND my birdie was 100% aware by that morning that we were going to be seeing something more severe than usual -- I'm gonna get the cat wall ready, have everyone ready or in place, get my sister's cat if she wants, and that way when/if a tornado shows back up, it won't matter if she's being (verbally) combative because I'll be able to lock her in the hallway and remind her that the PRIORITY is to SURVIVE, not to pack sandwiches or games for her toddlers to keep them from panicking
Also also, I didn't have to deal with storm PTSD the entire time, lol. Cured
hashtag cured 
