The Sick Room

LOL, I just bet you are! Again I have to say what a beautiful condo. You're going to be so happy and relaxed there I'm sure.

You, your mom, and DH are in my thoughts and prayers. {HUGS}

Oh GG! It doesn't rain but it pours. Sending positive vibes for you, your DH, your mum, and your dog. (((hugs)))

GotGarlic said:

Hi all. I haven't written about this before because I'm just so busy, but my husband and my mom are both in the hospital - in different hospitals two hours apart, to be precise. She got dehydrated which exacerbated her OCD and apparently the high sodium caused some sort of psychosis. My brother flew down from Oak Park (near Chicago) to talk with the doctors and case manager about what to do next. Fortunately, my second cousin and his wife live across the street and they have been a great help.

Meanwhile, DH was hospitalized for 2 days for dehydration last week. After he got home, he hardly ate anything for five days and didn't drink enough, so he was weak and malnourished. Monday night, he fell in the bathroom and I couldn't get him up, so I called the paramedics and they took him to the hospital. He has some other issues, so he'll probably be there for a few more days. So I'm going to take the opportunity to go see my mom in the hospital about 2 hours west of here.

Meanwhile, my dog got an ear hematoma, so I had to take her to the vet on Monday. $600 later, I get to give her antibiotics and steroids for two weeks. Yay.

So my participation here will be spotty for a while.

Give your loved ones a hug every chance you get

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Wow, you're going through a lot right now, GG. I can't imagine handling all of that at once.

I really hope things turn around and get easier for you and your family, including your doggie.

This place REALLY needs a *HUG* emoji

GG, you, your DH and your mom have suffered dehydration recently. If there was not medical condition causing it, please take the advice of a Texan here. Drink water even when you are not thirsty. In fact, especially if it is hot and you don't feel thirsty. Not feeling thirsty is sometimes a warning sign of dehydration -- I don't know why, but it happens.

With DH going through cancer treatment, he may not feel like eating or drinking anything. But he can sip a little bit of water throughout the day, or suck on some crushed ice to get some hydration, a little at a time.

Some electrolytes can help, too. Some Gatorade or even Pedialyte can help. But, those should be a supplement to water, not a replacement for it.

When I worked pipeline construction in Texas during summer breaks back in my college days, my co-workers and I watched each other, and made sure we were all drinking enough of water. We would nag each other about it -- peer pressure for a good reason.

CD

Thank you, everyone

caseydog said:

GG, you, your DH and your mom have suffered dehydration recently. If there was not medical condition causing it, please take the advice of a Texan here. Drink water even when you are not thirsty. In fact, especially if it is hot and you don't feel thirsty. Not feeling thirsty is sometimes a warning sign of dehydration -- I don't know why, but it happens.

With DH going through cancer treatment, he may not feel like eating or drinking anything. But he can sip a little bit of water throughout the day, or suck on some crushed ice to get some hydration, a little at a time.

Some electrolytes can help, too. Some Gatorade or even Pedialyte can help. But, those should be a supplement to water, not a replacement for it.

When I worked pipeline construction in Texas during summer breaks back in my college days, my co-workers and I watched each other, and made sure we were all drinking enough of water. We would nag each other about it -- peer pressure for a good reason.

CD

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I appreciate the advice. In my case, I don't absorb fluids well, so I have to infuse them, and I didn't get enough one day. I got chest pain, so I went to the ED. I was technically in kidney failure due to the electrolyte imbalance, so they persuaded me to stay overnight ("I have fluids at home! I'll take care of it myself!" "Well, your potassium is really high, so we'd like to give you some medicine to bring it down, and we'd like to have the nurses keep an eye on you." "OK, fine."). On the advice of my GI doctor, I drink beverages with sugar and a pinch of salt because they're more easily absorbed in the part of my digestive system I have left. So I drink a combination of cherry juice and raspberry lemonade.

With DH, for five days, he would only take a few mouthfuls of food and some flavored water, Ensure, Propel and ginger ale each day, but not enough, despite me offering him lots of different foods, especially fruit, yogurt, toast, pudding and ice cream. The doctor prescribed Marinol, a marijuana derivative, that is supposed to stimulate his appetite and suppress nausea. Hopefully it works.

With my mom, she's obsessive about her garden and spent too much time outside watering when it was so hot last week. And she's 81 years old, so of course, the electrolyte imbalance affected her more intensely.

So there were a variety of causes of the same issue. It's definitely a reminder, though, for all of us to be very careful with the changes in the climate increasing heat everywhere.

Not being well is horrible. Seeing your loved one's unwell adds heartbreak to the mixture. I pray for you and yours, GG.

GotGarlic said:

Give your loved ones a hug every chance you get

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You need a hug, too. (((hug)))

Hate not knowing where that bruise, ache, cut came from. Other day while washing up realize I had a huge, thick trail of dried blood all down my arm. When and Where did that happen? did I leave blood all over something? drips across the floor? out on the raw wood deck? on the car upholstery? was at the gym and stores - hopefully someone would have pointed it out to me!
Never figured it out, pretty long but very shallow gash - wire on the chicken fence? So washed it, smeared Polysporin on (hoping it isn't too late), almost healed, only one spot seemed to have been deep enough to cause the river flow, it never bled again.

dragnlaw said:

Hate not knowing where that bruise, ache, cut came from. Other day while washing up realize I had a huge, thick trail of dried blood all down my arm. When and Where did that happen? did I leave blood all over something? drips across the floor? out on the raw wood deck? on the car upholstery? was at the gym and stores - hopefully someone would have pointed it out to me!
Never figured it out, pretty long but very shallow gash - wire on the chicken fence? So washed it, smeared Polysporin on (hoping it isn't too late), almost healed, only one spot seemed to have been deep enough to cause the river flow, it never bled again.

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I hear you about the mystery bruises, etc. I hate that too. What the heck did I do? Well, at least at the moment, I know how the current damage happened.

@taxlady and @dragnlaw Let's face it: We are all in pretty good shape for the shape that we're in.

Battered, bruised but still kicking!

It's 3 AM. I was sound asleep. The phone rang. It was my mom. She was having one of her panic attacks. She usually calls my sister, but she called me, which is fine, because my sister usually gets stuck dealing with this. 2:30 AM is out of the ordinary. She usually sleeps through the night.

She said she didn't know where she was. I asked her what was around her, to make sure she was where she was supposed to be. She was at her kitchen table, so I knew she was safe in her apartment, so all I had to do was talk to her, and calm her down.

It's weird because she never listened to me when she was younger. But now, I think my voice reminds her of my dad's. When she is driving my sister nuts, I can talk to her, and it is like my dad is talking to her. She worries about money a lot, and bugs my sister about it. My sister tells her to call me. I tell her the same thing my sister tells her, and suddenly she I fine. My sister and I manage her money together, but for some reason, she feels better if she hears it from me. Again, my voice sounds just like my dad's, and maybe that's the thing.

Of course, now I am wide awake, and posting on DC because I couldn't just go back to sleep. That will pass, soon. I figure once I post this, and maybe reply to some posts, if there are any, I'll start to nod off, and will go back to bed.

I'm going to Houston next week, and my sister and I will need to have some serious discussions. Mom is 90, and is having these panic attacks more and more often. At this point, she is not a danger to herself, and she is in a safe place, and has friends who look after her. She does know to call us when she's having one of these panic attacks. Once I got her calmed down, and told her what time it was, she figured out that she should go back to bed.

CD

I got a call from a doctor at long term care, she is recommending husband go into hospice. They will call me tomorrow.

msmofet said:

I got a call from a doctor at long term care, she is recommending husband go into hospice. They will call me tomorrow.

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I am so sorry. I know how hard the last few months have been.
HUGS

Thank you

msmofet said:

I got a call from a doctor at long term care, she is recommending husband go into hospice. They will call me tomorrow.

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Sorry to hear that. But, when my dad went into hospice care, the caretakers were incredibly kind and respectful. They truly helped him move on without pain, and with complete dignity. It takes a special kind of person to do that. I hope your experience with hospice care is like ours was.

CD

Thank you

Aw, msmofet (((hugs))). I have no words. Sending love.