Thank goodness my brother Ken came out here to Oregon as well. I often wonder if I am making too much of a big deal of what's going on with Mom and Dad, or mis-reading the signs of trouble, but Ken sees them too. We got to witness a lesser "episode" today. A single glucose tablet was enough to bring him out of it enough to be able to eat. Today the doctor seemed to indicate that Dad needs to be on meds to help keep him awake during the day so that he is tired enough to sleep without so many of the pain pills for his horrid back pain. But this is symptom treatment. All of the symptoms are apparently related to renal problems. Apparently the doctor indicated that "this will kill me". Well, we have given Dad some good days. He has really enjoyed having Ken and me here, and I confess to really enjoying spending time with Ken. I have always thought that we didn't have much in common, but we actually have a lot of similar tastes in movies and sick humor.
Tomorrow we are heading to the coast, God willing. It seems to be really good for Dad to get out of the house, and having us here gives him the extra motivation to push himself past his pain or physical discomfort. Plus, it's hard to be this close to the coast without seeing and smelling the ocean and walking along the beach.
I think this has also been good for Mom. It seems to me that simply giving them a change of pace and an alteration to their days has been a good thing, even if we do watch things on TV that puzzle them. (I turned on "Elf" today, and Ken watched some WW-something or other.)
I baked a chicken with olive oil and fresh rosemary, but their oven is faulty and didn't roast it nearly fast enough. I wound up finishing it in the microwave and then oven broiling it for color. Moist and delicious.
After seeing an "episode", there is no way anyone without medical training and/or experience could handle this. It's frightening, and if he is combative or near comatose, it would be terrifying and possibly dangerous.
Well, the best hope is that Dad's schedule gets under control, so that his blood sugar is better regulated. This would help Mom.
What to do? I guess just visit as often as possible, call, write, and email.
1 comment:
Oh, Kim, I'm so sorry you're having to go through this and see your Dad go through this. But your post is classic making the most of things and thinking positively yet realistically. I'm so glad for the time with Ken and you getting to see the ocean.
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