It's Never Over...
Tue., July 14, 04:02 PM
…till it’s over. So, where was I? Um, Friday. Saturday…I don’t remember anything special that happened Saturday, unless it has just slipped my memory. That was the day that we let Husband sleep late; he never asked for lunch, and I gave it to him for supper. Go, me!
Son came down on Sunday, mostly to talk to Husband about going into permanent care. He explained well, and Husband was okay with it. Then Son went back home, because “Lila doesn’t allow him to go away too much” — I love it! U.D. and I began preparing to take Husband to a condolence visit. We didn’t rush him or anything, because we wanted him in a good mood. We did, however, tell him he had to wear his oxygen. (For the first time since he has had it, he used up a whole container in one day.)
I think he enjoyed the ride. He thought the GPS was pretty funny. Of course, he was tired by the time we arrived, and he mostly sat there in his own little world. Occasionally he would perk up and ask for someone, or ask UD who people were.
I know it was a strain on him, but this one was important. The young man who died was a grandson to Alyce and George. When Husband was a teenager, he used to babysit Alyce’s little girls, one of whom is the mother. (Sorry for the convoluted explanation, trying to preserve anonymity.) It is always tragic when parents outlive their child, even if there are still other children, as well as grandchildren. Husband understands that; I was also thinking that his family might not get another chance to see him.
We stayed a little later than we intended — more about that later — and, having had something to eat, Husband just took his evening medication with some juice and went to sleep. Monday would be back to the routine day care, and I would take care of various kinds of business. Oy, don’t plan!
On Monday morning, Husband told us he thought he was bleeding. Maybe he was and maybe he wasn’t. In any case, he was frightened enough not to fuss about going to the ER. They called him in almost immediately, and the triage nurse brought him in for treatment. They would notify us when we could go and see him.
I don’t believe they found any blood, although there might have been invisible traces. But he was beginning another respiratory emergency. I did think he was about due. Once again, U.D. and I sat and waited for the better part of a day. I think I knew what was going on better than the residents who were caring for him. (Surely those kids are not old enough to be doctors!) Today the doctor we were waiting for yesterday called me; she never did get there yesterday, so it’s a good thing we went home. They will do the same things — force air into his lungs to clean them out, give him antibiotics for any infection he might be harboring, and release him. With a little luck he will be released to a nursing home, and we can proceed from there.
For those of you who are interested in medical details: yes, his white cell count is elevated, but there is no fever; his blood carbon dioxide was 95; he is in no pain. But then, he has to be in really bad pain before he admits it.
Today I started doing some of the phoning and research I had intended to start yesterday. The rep at the VA insurance site told me I had clicked on the wrong button, and that’s why I was confused. I asked what I should be clicking and told him I would call after I had looked. No such button on the page. I searched the website and found a link for a description of the program. It does not open; it cannot be viewed. Ya gotta love the federal information websites. Whatever they’re wasting our money on, it is not good programmers. So I sat here today and waited for the phone to ring; most times it was my sister. I paid bills, balanced the checking statement, read other people’s pages. Maybe we will visit Husband tonight.
But I am not making any plans!
