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And now what did you do TODAY?


morphsci

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Drove home to Oklahoma to say goodbye to my Dad. He's in a hospice dying of stomach cancer and has no time left. He's still conscious and in no pain, but having pretty labored breathing while talking. Never drank or smoked in his life.

Fucking stomach cancer...

So sorry to hear this. I've been there with my dad, and know that it's not easy and it's not fair. Make the best of your time with him. Just being there for him will mean more than you can know.

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More good wishes for you and your dad Archosman, and more disdain for cancer.

As for me, I talked on the phone with my dad yesterday for 30 minutes early in the day and caught up with his post-stroke rehab and other stuff from the week. Then, a couple hours later we got a call from him in a panic because he was home alone (don't ask why, too annoying) and stuck walking down the hall with his leg paralyzed and feeling like he was about to fall. He uses a walker now and carries the phone on it, luckily. I talked him down a bit while Claire called 911 (even though he lives an hour away) and he managed to open a heater closet and sit on the ledge without hurting himself.

Next was the worst part because he stopped talking to me even though I could still hear him. He seemed to be breathing heavily and I thought he was muttering quietly. I kept talking and trying to get a response but got nothing. I thought he was having another stroke and/or dying. It was an awful experience. The line died so I called right back and remarkably he answered and then put the paramedics on the phone because they had arrived. Fucking nightmare.

He has had blood clot problems in his left leg for 25 years but the stroke meant no more blood thinners. Turns out his right leg was full of new clots from his calf to thigh and his leg is swollen and unresponsive. They put in a filter a couple weeks ago so he hopefully cannot throw a clot to his lungs or brain. Now he is back on thinners and we have to hope for no brain bleeds. Balance is tough.

I spent about 8 hours at the hospital yesterday, stayed at my dad's house and went back this morning. He is very discouraged after working hard at rehab and sees his upcoming 90th birthday as his last if he makes that. Like cancer, getting old really sucks.

Think good thoughts HC friends. It has helped in the past. :/

Edited by Voltron
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PS: I assume you brought the right calculator? evil.gif

This! Too funny, Larry.

Al, sounds like "home alone" is not the norm, which is good. I'm sure your dad needs company as much as anything these days, but really sorry to learn about his medical problems. I'm sure he was just as scared as you were, but thankfully you and Claire were able to help from a distance, and then be there for him. Just remember, there is no better way to spend your time in a bad way, if that makes any sense.

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Drove home to Oklahoma to say goodbye to my Dad. He's in a hospice dying of stomach cancer and has no time left. He's still conscious and in no pain, but having pretty labored breathing while talking. Never drank or smoked in his life.

Fucking stomach cancer...

Our family has always gotten along with each other and we're all close, so there's not much to say that hasn't already been said. All 3 of us have come in. I'm the last one here. Don't think he wants to leave, but he needs to know we'll be allright.

I know it's tough dealing with this kind of thing - we've had a mix where some family members have died slowly and others who have died suddenly. Neither scenario seems to make it any easier. When they've died suddenly we've wished for more time to say goodbye, and when they've lingered we were glad to be able to say goodbye but we struggled with watching them suffer longer. My prayers are with you.

More good wishes for you and your dad Archosman, and more disdain for cancer.

As for me, I talked on the phone with my dad yesterday for 30 minutes early in the day and caught up with his post-stroke rehab and other stuff from the week. Then, a couple hours later we got a call from him in a panic because he was home alone (don't ask why, too annoying) and stuck walking down the hall with his leg paralyzed and feeling like he was about to fall. He uses a walker now and carries the phone on it, luckily. I talked him down a bit while Claire called 911 (even though he lives an hour away) and he managed to open a heater closet and sit on the ledge without hurting himself.

Next was the worst part because he stopped talking to me even though I could still hear him. He seemed to be breathing heavily and I thought he was muttering quietly. I kept talking and trying to get a response but got nothing. I thought he was having another stroke and/or dying. It was an awful experience. The line died so I called right back and remarkably he answered and then put the paramedics on the phone because they had arrived. Fucking nightmare.

He has had blood clot problems in his left leg for 25 years but the stroke meant no more blood thinners. Turns out his right leg was full of new clots from his calf to thigh and his leg is swollen and unresponsive. They put in a filter a couple weeks ago so he hopefully cannot throw a clot to his lungs or brain. Now he is back on thinners and we have to hope for no brain bleeds. Balance is tough.

I spent about 8 hours at the hospital yesterday, stayed at my dad's house and went back this morning. He is very discouraged after working hard at rehab and sees his upcoming 90th birthday as his last if he makes that. Like cancer, getting old really sucks.

Think good thoughts HC friends. It has helped in the past. :/

My prayers are with you too, and I'm glad you got to spend time with him after this event. Our sick or ill elderly always seem to call their family before they call 911 when something is wrong. It's so reassuring that they put their faith in us like that, but we need to work extra hard to educate and to get them to call 911 first and not lose time waiting to get our advice. In my father-in-laws case it might have made a difference.

My brother-in-law had a conversation with my wife's father last summer, where their father was sounding a little incoherent in a phone call. Father-in-law had experienced a few days of sore throat and coughing and he'd agreed to see the doctor 3-4 days prior. He never went to the doctor, but called his son when he was worse. He'd been on oxygen for emphysema, and had mild diabetes, hypertension and angina, but didn't describe any symptoms indicating anything serious was happening. But he wasn't making a lot of sense when he was talking, and then he was describing urinary incontinence while on the phone but without seeming alarmed by it himself.

So my Brother-in-law called me immediately while he was rushing on his way to go check on him. I told him to call 911 right away in case father-in-law was having a diabetic crisis or a stroke. The paramedics got there less than 5 minutes later, but father-in-law was already down and gone. My brother-in-law arrived while they we're finishing up with CPR. Sometimes EMS gets there in time, and sometimes not, but early intervention and access always increases the odds of a good outcome. I'm glad they were able to get there in time for your dad!

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