Many of you that are friends with me on Facebook already know what happened. For those of you that dont, well, the short story is I was down in So. Cal taking care of my mom for 6 weeks because she has lung cancer and is a dialysis patient. She got very ill and was hospitalized for 9-10 days. (I lost count.) I got her home, got her stable, and finally went back up to Oregon to handle some stuff. 10 days later I got the phone call I dreaded...my moms heart stopped. They zapped her back but she was on life support. I left Roseburg and drove 12 hours to get to her. Since then I have been here with her in the hospital taking care of her as best as I can. I got here at 1:30 AM on a Monday/Tuesday Oct 6, spent a week in ICU with her (where her heart stopped again), and now were on the normal floor.
Anyhow, here's the latest update from today. I know there's some missing but I am too tired to move them all to here. But...I'll cross post from now on so you guys can stay informed. :angel:
Mom Update:
Sorry I haven't updated sooner. I have been up with her since 7 AM and have been running ragged ever since. My ass is dragging by the time I can wind down and write these things, and I get too tired, but I know many of you out there are waiting so here it is.
Mom didn't get moved today. Someone dropped the ball somewhere and so they're doing it tomorrow. Supposedly at 7 AM but...we'll see. This is fine with me because I like it here. Today I got offered a job here. LOL!! They see what a neat freak I am and how I clean and sterilize everything and how I am with mom and others and said I should work here. Kinda made me giggle.
Mom is now known around here as "The Cat". They said she has 9 lives. People keep coming to her room and peeking in and checking on her. The 2 guys that did CPR on her came by to visit. They can't believe she's survived TWO code blues! I said "You don't know my mom."
Her heart doctor came in, shakes his head and says "I can't believe you are still alive", and leaves. Her primary doctor came in, asked a few questions, said he will be back in 5 minutes and never returned. (Jerk) Her Oncologist came in, got pissed off at her because she was out smoking, left, and never returned. (Jerk #2)
Then... we find out later he's ordered an MRI but by this time mom is on the dialysis machine and can't do it. The guy goes "Well just uncook her, and hook her back up to it when we're done." Ie yie yie... I swear...some people are lacking brain cells. :-/
Mom did really well on dialysis today. They bumped her time up to 3å? hours with the pump rate at 200 and 2 doses of Albinum to keep her heart steady while on the machine. So far, so good. She has been eating like a vulture. Unfortunately, her eating is keeping her diarrhea going like a faucet. Nothing they give her is stopping it. She's starting to get skin sores and a "raw ass" as she says from that plus sitting in that bed for 10+ days now.
Her "water feet" are a little better but still have to be wrapped to protect the raw skin. The blisters make the skin separate and feel like a raw sunburn so I put aloe vera and this other goop they gave me on them and wrap them up. She goes "Ahhhhhh that feels GOOD."
I finally got her hair washed and braided. MAN her hair STUNK. Yeck!!! Now I just want to hose her down. J/k!
Her Nephrologist came in and actually helped with her wound care AND got some answers for me. He asked what was going on, I told him they all scattered like ants and never told us anything, and so he said "I'll be right back." Sure enough he came back with the info them two others had but never told us. I really like this doctor...I have from day one. :good:
Moms food has been sucking here so today I have done two food runs. One was for lunch, the other for dinner. During all of this time I am also doing many menial tasks...I wont bore ya with everything but I can tell you my feet hurt!!
At about 9 PM, I was finally able to run to the house, turn on Homer, take a shower, pack up, and leave to come back here. And here I am now, typing you guys up this fine update.
So, until tomorrow, I'll sign off. I am EXHAUSTED beyond belief and I know tomorrow is going to be a very busy day so I need to sleep as much as I can in my reclining recliner bed. I'm bummed we're leaving this hospital...hopefully the next one is just as flexible and kind. Wish me luck! :whistle:
~Angel
Angel,
Our prayers are with you and your mother.
Did she intend this chore for you many years ago when you were named Angel, or did that name come more directly from above?
No luck required dear, your name is your job.
Paul in PA
Rest and recoup. You've earned it. Thoughts and prayers for the 3 of you. GB. - Scott
Friday Night Mom Update:
What a day today has been!! I feel like I have ran around the world and back and then some. +o(
I had a hard time sleeping last night. I think it was because I was anxious about them moving mom. I was worried about her transport, her frame of mind, her everything, really. I honestly did not think they'd be there at 7 AM to pick her up, but...guess what. They were. They were there at 6:30 AM actually. I had about 15-20 minutes to wake my ass up, gather up all of moms and mines stuff, and get it loaded in the car. Fortunately the ambulance transport folks helped me out. Mom did great. I think she is enjoying all of the doting on her. B-)
We got mom to the next hospital in about 10 minutes. It's in a very weird location. Dad calls it a "F**king Maze for Rats." But...since I grew up around here and played at the park across the street from this hospital, I knew right where to go. As soon as we got mom up to her room things went absolutely CRAZY. :-O
First off, the room was very tiny; we got claustrophobic instantly. And then there was her roommate...The poor lady was noisy and confused. She kept singing...crying...arguing...etc... I felt bad for her. I comforted her for a little bit but I could only do so much. I talked with her and show her how to use the TV remote and...she got temporarily quiet and everyone else got very grateful. 😐
THEN..they we're doing construction next door. Everything was buzzing. Saws...noise...drills...unbelievable. My mom was very patient, but she could only take so much.She was going to go off on them. I could tell.
THEN...out of the blue, moms roommate reached for the IV pole, ripped out all of her IVs, threw the pole on the floor and ripped out her IVS. I ran over there and grabbed the pole back from her and mom buzzed the buzzer for the nurse. The nurse came in and room mate punched the nurse. Then roommate apologizes for punching said nurse, and says she will hit me next. I said "If you hit me, I won't be able to help you anymore with your TV remote." Roommate says she's sorry, lets go of IV bag and lets nurse her her hooked back up. PHEW.
THEN...Code Blue. Not mom thank God. All nurse's went running. As soon as they were all gone, moms room mate desides to aspirate and started choking. Mom just sits here and watches and shakes her head...and points and says help her. I do what I do and get roommate to stop choking. (I'll leave out the grosser details.) Mom rings buzzer. Nurse comes in and finishes taking care of choker patient. Rest of nurse's come in and look at me and thank me. After that, I was wide awake!! :-O
Apparently they heard about me from the other hospital and decide they like me and want me to stay. They feed me lunch. Beef Stroganoff with veggies. Not too bad. Mom picks off some and shakes her head. Then they move us to a better room on the other side of the hospital so I can have a recliner and take care of mom. OMG what an improvement!! WE HAVE OUR OWN ROOM PEOPLE!! WITH a SHOWER!! And the recliner turns into a BED!! I'm in Heaven. Ahhhhhh... :angel:
After we move, doctor comes in and scolds mom about how she is the only woman in his life that has ran out on him several times. (He's referring to her previous AMA stays at the other hospital.) He tells her she CANNOT do this here; if she does, there's no more options for her. Mom giggles and says she will stay put. She also cannot smoke here and she's agreed to quit for a while. I told her I'd get her some candy cigarettes. Nurse and I change moms foot bandages. Pretty soon they are going to mess around with mom (Xrays, bath, pre-chemo meds, etc...) so I figure it is a good time for me to head back to the house. On my way out of the hospital I scope out the NICE cafeteria, gift shop, etc... I'll return later to inspect it more. I get back to the house and sleep solidly for 3 HOURS. I must have needed it.
I get back to the hospital to find that they have started mom on chemo. She's up and alert and eating like a vulture. She's also CLEAN! No more poo poo pants. I brush and braid her hair. I then head out to the street a block away to hunt down some grub for me, and a snack for mom. There is a farmers market going on and I spot this lady that makes some sort of sports team candy jar thing. I order a Cardinals one of course. tongue emoticon Then I go over and get mom a GIANT bag of freshly popped kettle corn. Then head over to the Mediterranean restaurant and get dinner and drag it all back to the room.
I walk in with the kettle corn and moms eyes open wide up and her and dad immediately snatch the kettle corn and start grubbing. Then mom wants some of my dinner. THEN she wants graham crackers. I run back to the other side of the hospital where there's a stash of them and get some. THEN she wants coffee. I run and get some. Then she steals a few gummy bears. Then she decides she's tired so she brushes her teeth and crawls into bed. I tell her I will BRB and walk Wendell down to the truck. (I also wanted the fresh air.) I get back to her room and she's out like a light. I guess chemo & the other drugs caught up to her and she's FINALLY resting. So here I am FINALLY typing tonight's update. The nurse just brought me in my blankie so I think *I* am going to play a few games on the PC, and go to bed. Phew!! I hope I can sleep for several hours!! :clock:
So, for now...goodnight folks. More tomorrow. :angel:
Nightly Mom Update for Saturday, Oct. 17, 2015.
Good evening folks. Today was another busy day. Well, I was the busy one. Mom was the one dictating which way I was going to be busy. 😛
Before I forget...I need to say something important. It may not stick but...I swear on my Cardinals, that it's true. SOUND THE TRUMPETS!! MOM SAID SHE'S QUITTING SMOKING!! 😀 😀 😀 😀 😀 😀 😀
She was told today that her tumor is easily dissolvable with chemo, but...if she keeps smoking, that it will come back AND it will be chemo resistant. Plus I think she is tired of all of these needles, IVS, bedsores, biopsies, and all of this other crap she's gone through due to smoking. :/
Anyhow, back to today...
I woke up at about 8:00 AM. Mom lets me sleep. I told her if she needs something, to wake me up but NO, she calls the nurses and lets me sleep. I then feel guilty for not getting up to help her. :/ This morning they bathed her, changed her, etc...and I didn't hear squat. Then she had an "accident" and that's when I finally heard the commotion and flew out of bed. By then it was too late, but...we got her cleaned up and back in bed. I then got my butt dressed and cleaned up. Wendell came down to have breakfast with me. W and I headed down to the cafeteria for breakfast but it all looked yucky so we decided to go walk downtown and find something. Well, mom then dictates to me that while I am out, I should go get her some of her favorite heart cookies from the bakery. I did just that. Did you think I wouldnt?? 😉
When we got back to the room the dialysis tech came to dialyze mom. Well, mom is a little out of it and thought it was the same girl that did it last week that was mean to her and mom had a fit! She starts screaming at this girl, "Get out of here! You aren't touching me!" It wasn't the same girl but the poor girl was wondering what the hell was going on. I explained it to her and she said it was OK, she understood, and they'd get a new tech out soon. (Ya...uh huh sure.) I came back in and told mom "Hey that's not the same lady." Mom grumbled back and said "Well, all *I* saw was a MONSTER and I am not letting that MONSTER TOUCH ME." 😮
So, after getting mom calmed down and after dad gets here, I decide to go with W to get new shoes, since his are falling apart at the seams. Seriously. Mom perks up and says "Well, while your out can you go get me cookies from the deli? Oh and get Bootie some cat treats. And I want a box of Rice Crispies. Not the fake ones. Oh and some tabloid magazines."
Then dad pipes in..."Well, while your out, bring me back a meatball sandwich." Sheesh!! So, I ran off to play gopher and run all over the city. On my way out moms old roommate spots me and starts screaming for me. "Angel! Angel!" Ugh...I couldn't go in there because she's now under quarantine, plus I was limited on time.
I run to the shoe store, Target, PetsMart, and the Deli. I razz my old boss from when I worked there at the Deli in 1987. I tell him he got old. He laughs and hands me cookies. I then head back to hospital & I drag all items back to moms room. Mom and dad are now happy campers. Then they start begging for the kettle corn. I had hid it so I could actually HAVE some before they devoured the entire bag. I reluctantly share my kettle corn and try to talk them into eating other stuff they have here. One would think with the gummy bears, cupcakes, cookies, rice crispies, and other assorted goodies I have in the "stash" pile that they'd eat that stuff but NO...they want my kettle corn. Ahhh well...next Friday I will buy two jumbo bags of the stuff. 😛
Anyhow, since things were calm and mom wasn't going to get dialyzed until later in the afternoon, I figured it was a good time for me to run home and do my usual. Mom makes a list of stuff for me to do while at the house. Dad shakes his head and asks me how I remember everything she asks for. I head back to the house and boss W around to do a few things to help me get stuff done faster so I can get back to the hospital. In an hours time I managed to do 2 loads of laundry, gather up moms mail, pack up 5 pill packs, pester cats and give cats treats, clean cat boxes, re-organize my hospital over night bag, take a shower and FINALLY wash & condition my hair & shave my legs, and while I was doing this in the shower, I was telling Wendell through the shower window what to do with my clothes. (Some I air dry.) I got out, got ready, packed up the car, and headed back to the hospital.
When I got here, they were just getting ready to start mom on dialysis. Since she pitched up such a fit, they sent the actual dialysis supervisor out to dialyze mom. She did really well! They didn't have to give her any Albinum today!! YAY!! While this was going on, I ran down to the cafeteria & got me a salad, some steamed veggies, garlic toast and a healthy aloe vera drink. I bring it back to moms room and mom eyes my food, even though she has her OWN food. I tell her "Ok just help yourself." She looks at my food again and decides she doesn't want any, BUT...she wants her cookies. Since there is 10,000 different assorted cookies here now in the stash, I say "Which cookies? We have a cookie store here." She decides to pick the wedding bell cookies, the MESSIEST cookies in the batch, and proceeds to eat those. She gets cookie crumbs and powdered sugar all over herself, all over her face, somehow gets it inside her chest, in her hair, on the floor, on the rolling table, on the blankets, etc...I clean up the mess on her and on everything else and she does it again. I give up. I'll clean when she's done. She winds up eating 3 wedding bell cookies, 1 heart cookie, and 3 pecan cookies. I figured I better hide my clamshell cookies or those were next. She said "Don't worry, I don't like those. They're safe." Imagine that...I get to keep my cookies!! 😀
Mom then decides to thumb through her People magazine. She sees the article in there about the Roseburg shootings and gets a look of sadness on her face and pushes the magazine away. She then asks how "my kids" are doing. I told her they are getting better every day and that they asked how she was doing as well. She said tell them "I'm hanging in there." Later on, on the local news here in L.A., the story airs again and mom again has that same look of sadness and disgust. I change the channel.
Right after dialysis they come in to do chemo. Well, moms IV blew so they had to find a new port. It took 2 nurses but they finally got one, but...not without getting blood all over the bed, floor, pillowcase, and mom. So I clean all of that up and clean up mom yet again. (It's a good thing I bought baby wipes earlier!) Nurse examines mom and poor mom has bad bedsores down by her butt. Nurse runs off and comes back with some special cream for it. Mom FINALLY gets some soothing relief from her boo boos and drifts off to sleep. And...that's where we are at now. I was going to change her foot dressings but I'll wait until the morning. She needs to sleep. SO do I.
So there ya go. Tonight's update. Now I am going to go crawl into my little corner on my little bed and SLEEP. *yawn*
Good night folks. More tomorrow... O:)
Thank you for the detailed updates kiddo. I always say that our children turn us into old people, but then I guess there comes this wonderful new chapter that you are living now. Not only are these detailed posts therapeutic (hopefully) for you, but they are also defintely very helpful in preparing those of us who are not there yet. Thank you Angel, for everything.
