I’ve been somewhat off the radar these past couple of weeks. Here’s a brief update on where my epochally interesting and exciting life has taken me recently:
About two and a half weeks ago, my father had two stents put into an artery near his heart. It’s a difficult procedure (though not nearly as elaborate as open heart surgery). I flew to Pittsburgh from L.A. to be with him and my mom.
My dad is 82 years old, and experiencing what the medical establishment calls the early stages of Alzheimer’s.
The procedure went well. However, due to the drugs he was given and the physical toll the process took on him, he was very out of it, very confused, and extremely weakened.
Because of his mental state and his poor short-term memory, he was unable to be alone. My mom and I worked it out so that at least one of us was with him at all times; we traded off spending nights in the hospital room with him.
He was released from the hospital a little over a week ago. We took him home, and for much of the first day he seemed to be doing better. Within a few hours he was walking with the aid of a walker, then with a cane, and by the end of the day he was getting around entirely on his own.
Later that evening, however, he became extremely weak, and practically collapsed. He wasn’t in pain — just seemingly exhausted, and possibly affected by several new medications he had been given. We decided to wait it out. When he was no better the next morning, we decided to take him back to the hospital.
We brought him to the ER, and he was re-admitted. I’ll spare you the tumultuous details of the next several days — suffice it to say, it was a long and often very frustrating ordeal, with a great deal of hassling with (and on occasion, tearfully begging) the hospital staff.
Three days ago, my dad was moved from the hospital into a rehab facility, ostensibly for physical therapy. The place is indistinguishable, however, from a geriatric nursing home.
Frankly, I’m not thrilled with the facility, and my dad might very well be moved yet again in the next day or so.
Dad is progressing physically, and has improved considerably mentally. He still suffers from dreadful confusion at times, particularly when he’s tired, and especially when he’s waking up.
Last night we tried leaving him by himself for the first time since this adventure began. This morning, we received a phone call; he was highly agitated and wanted us near him immediately.
Tonight, we decided to try again. After I drove my mom home for the night, I returned to the facility to check on him. The light was on in the room and he was awake and talking with one of the nursing staff. He was totally confused, and told me he was more frightened than he had ever been in his life.
He asked me to spend the night in the room with him. How can I say no?
The facility has no Wi-Fi, so I’m typing this on my laptop, and shortly will steal away to the rec room to make use of the only Internet connection that’s available to me here.
Actually getting sleep in this room (if you’re not the one lying in bed) is practically impossible. There is a large, uncomfortable chair — apparently the facility’s way of saying they don’t like family members staying over.
As difficult as the situation is, I’m extremely glad to be here, and I’ve learned a lot over the past couple of weeks. I’m a lot stronger that I’d thought. I’ve felt some of the toughest emotions of my life — yet I’m able to “keep it together” and remain in control, even in difficult times.
I’ll post more about what I’m experiencing soon. For now, I’m staying in Pittsburgh, and will be here for at least a few more days.
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Hey, Kevin, my thoughts are with you and your family. Hang in there. If you need to talk, hit me up! Thanks for sharing your ordeal. It really does seem to help.
Warmest regards,
Wayne