Decent morning so far...
After sleeping ALL of Sunday, Susie only got up a couple of times in the middle of the night. Her strength was pretty low, so I had to help her to the bathroom and then back into bed again.
She got up this morning and briefly came out for some cherries and coffee, but then went back to sleep.
@10:30, The hospice nurse came in to check on her and take her vitals. She was chatting pretty well with the nurse who gave her some reading glasses.
Then Naomi showed up and had a nice chat with Susie - Good comprehension and not much slurring.
Overall, a great morning - hope that it lasts.
brief moments of lucidity. Some rock carving, but not much. lots o napping.
Funny:
When asked how she slept, she always answers with:
"I would have slept great if people didn't keep coming in to ask me if I need anything every 5 minutes"
New Reiki person arrived at 5.
not much cognitive ability during dinner - lots of slurring and it was really hard to understand her, but at least she ate.
I gather she napped after dinner while I went off to hockey.
After hockey Bob left for Liz's place while I helped Susie.
3 comments:
Overall, it was a good day I think -- Susie's able to stand and walk step by step with help from her dad, at least to the end of the bed where we have the wheelchair ready. She's willing to accept the wheelchair finally -- phew! It really saves a lot of strength for the important things, like making the trip to the bathroom and back without collapsing. And sitting with us at the table...
I was doing some carving and she came outside to see what I was up to. And sat with her dad watching tv (funniest animal videos I think) for maybe a half hour. So there's some variety for her.
Susie brightened up when Jonah came home from work, very cute, and wished him a good trip when he went off to hockey!
The reiki treatment seemed to help a lot -- she said she actually felt no pain after about 25 minutes -- but then as soon as it was over the headache returned with a vengeance.
Her moments of lucidity seem to be shorter and happen less often, but there are still many throughout the day, so we enjoy that with her. Half the time we think she's mumbling mumbo-jumbo, only to realize we just can't understand what she's saying at first, but she's right on the ball. You can just imagine her frustration at us! THAT LOOK!!
Susie's having more trouble regulating her body temperature, she goes from very cold to very hot often, so keeping her comfortable is a minute-to-minute balancing act. This is normal for someone in her state, but I hate for her to have to go through that too.
We're all hoping tomorrow will bring her more comfort and rest, less anxiety and restlessness.
Sarah, Jonah's sister
Thanks Sarah, for the update. Looking forward to meeting you tonight.
On Tuesday June 3rd in the evening Susie had a lot of visitors and seemed to be doing quite well. Her visitors included Gloria, Kat, Bobby and his girlfriend, Liz, and Tracy (not all at the same time but overlapping). During dinner Susie was conversing and was pretty easy to understand and lucid. Then she went outside to work on rock sculpting, accepting the wheelchair to do so after first wanting to use her crutches.
Then after a while she wanted to come inside and rest. Her pets cuddled around her while I rubbed her feet. We reminisced about things like Squirrels events, pets, and hockey - both contributing various memories. Only a few times was she slurring or saying things that didn't make sense. Often she would reach for Toby or Owen to stroke them during our chat. For the most part, she was the Susie we all know and love. Bobby seemed to have a nice visit- too.
Hopefully Susie is not too worn down by all the adoring fans and is doing ok today. My presence in her room, though I tried to be soothing, caused her to stay awake.
I am truly grateful to Jonah, Bob, Gloria, Kat and Liz for the opportunity to visit with her. Bob and Jonah are such loving and attentive care-givers. I wish there was more I could do for all involved.
Tracy
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