I know I just updated the blog but the Hospice nurse was just here and I felt it necessary to inform you as to her findings.
Dads blood pressure is good as is his heart rate it is slow and steady. But he does have some rattling going on in his left lung. This is to be expected as his origins start to shut down. His kidneys are functioning less thus his urine is darker and more concentrated. He is more stiff and in more pain as to his Joints and movement. he is coughing more and it is more labored for him to recover his breath when he does cough.
The nurse has told me to up his morphine to 10 mg and to increase one of his other med's. thus helping him relax more and keep him out of pain.
he still has good days and bad days, days he eats and days he does not eat. but defiantly signs of his origins starting to shut down slowly. his skin is dryer and flaky especially on his scalp, forehead and nose. We keep putting a clinical streangth loation on it and it helps more than not.
over all things are going good and they keep telling me I am doing an excellent job.
They are so good and gentle with dad and it is great.
hope you are all well and good. Love you all
Jo Ellen
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
October 19, 2010
Hello everyone, I hope this finds you all well and Happy.
Life here in our house has been fairly routine.
Dad is doing fine. I have seen little declines here and there. it is now very rare to here him speak anything. I see him smile and even laugh once in a while. When he does speak it is barley a whisper and rarely is any one able to decipher what he is saying. He is coughing allot more especially at nigh so the doctor has prescribed 5 mg of Morphine dissolved with a very small amount of water when he goes to bed. this helps allot. He eats good off and on his pattern seams to be eat good 1-2 days don't eat at all for 3 days. he continues to loose weight a little here and a little there.
I gave dad a haircut the other day it is much nicer not to have snarls in the back of his head every day. Dad is getting more and more rigged and it is getting harder to get him to bend enough to sit in his wheel chair. This is to be expected. he will probably soon get to the point where we don't even get him out of bed. it causes him so much pain to bend those joints that have been stiff for so long.
A tender moment I must share with all of you. Yesterday I found the video that Hospice made of with Mom so I decided to play it for dad. He started to smile and he even started to cry I said are you sad dad he said no so I asked him are you happy he said yes. it touched him so much to hear moms voice. I have not seen him smile like that in a long time. How special it was. I am so glad I did that and I will play it for him again another day.
Other than that life is basically day to day the same. We are getting Eric ready to leave for his mission. He reports to the Missionary training center in Provo, Ut. December 15th. he will be there for several weeks learning to speak Spanish before being sent to Vancouver Canada mission. He is so exited and cant wait. He will be a great Missionary.
Love you all Jo Ellen
Life here in our house has been fairly routine.
Dad is doing fine. I have seen little declines here and there. it is now very rare to here him speak anything. I see him smile and even laugh once in a while. When he does speak it is barley a whisper and rarely is any one able to decipher what he is saying. He is coughing allot more especially at nigh so the doctor has prescribed 5 mg of Morphine dissolved with a very small amount of water when he goes to bed. this helps allot. He eats good off and on his pattern seams to be eat good 1-2 days don't eat at all for 3 days. he continues to loose weight a little here and a little there.
I gave dad a haircut the other day it is much nicer not to have snarls in the back of his head every day. Dad is getting more and more rigged and it is getting harder to get him to bend enough to sit in his wheel chair. This is to be expected. he will probably soon get to the point where we don't even get him out of bed. it causes him so much pain to bend those joints that have been stiff for so long.
A tender moment I must share with all of you. Yesterday I found the video that Hospice made of with Mom so I decided to play it for dad. He started to smile and he even started to cry I said are you sad dad he said no so I asked him are you happy he said yes. it touched him so much to hear moms voice. I have not seen him smile like that in a long time. How special it was. I am so glad I did that and I will play it for him again another day.
Other than that life is basically day to day the same. We are getting Eric ready to leave for his mission. He reports to the Missionary training center in Provo, Ut. December 15th. he will be there for several weeks learning to speak Spanish before being sent to Vancouver Canada mission. He is so exited and cant wait. He will be a great Missionary.
Love you all Jo Ellen
Friday, October 8, 2010
October 8 , 2010
Hello everyone ! I hope this finds all of you well. I know 
I have not posted an update on dad for a little while. We have been settling into a good schedule and things are going well. Hospice comes 3 times a week to bath dad. Also the hospice nurse comes once or twice a week to check on Dad and do his vitals etc. and about every other week the Hospice psychologist comes to see him and me.
Dad has had some decline but as the Hospice nurse told me it is to be expected. Not form any
thing I have done but it is just the disease. She suspects dad will no longer be eating within the next few weeks. just from symptoms he is having and how it is getting so hard for him to swallow anything. It is always a hard swallow. he is getting more rigid and this makes it harder to move him around and dress. as of right now his lungs still sound clear and his belly sounds good. his blood pressure is good today. his kidney function is good. his weight is down to 147.4 as of yesterday even though he is eating very well. in fact he eats almost as much as Eric does.
The Hospice nurse and case worker said if anybody would like to talk to her about Dad that you can call her any time She would love to answer any questions and concerns you might have. Her
name is Lynn Fecht and the Carthage Hospice number is 217-357-3222 Quincy number is 1-877-627-7610 just ask for her and they will probably send you to her voice mail just leave a message and she will call you back. as well as the psychologist is there for any of the family members for counseling or just a listening ear there is no charge for her services.
attached you will see pictures of the room where Dad's bed is and just a few other shots. Our cat Mr. Tickles who drools when he is happy and content, a flower, and a picture of our Dog Dipper who we had to put to sleep last month. He was about 10 years and had congestive heart failure and a huge mass in his chest cavity the vet said was probably cancer. We Love you and will miss you Dipper.
I love you all so much and want you to know I am giving Dad the best care possible.
Jo Ellen
I have not posted an update on dad for a little while. We have been settling into a good schedule and things are going well. Hospice comes 3 times a week to bath dad. Also the hospice nurse comes once or twice a week to check on Dad and do his vitals etc. and about every other week the Hospice psychologist comes to see him and me.Dad has had some decline but as the Hospice nurse told me it is to be expected. Not form any
thing I have done but it is just the disease. She suspects dad will no longer be eating within the next few weeks. just from symptoms he is having and how it is getting so hard for him to swallow anything. It is always a hard swallow. he is getting more rigid and this makes it harder to move him around and dress. as of right now his lungs still sound clear and his belly sounds good. his blood pressure is good today. his kidney function is good. his weight is down to 147.4 as of yesterday even though he is eating very well. in fact he eats almost as much as Eric does.The Hospice nurse and case worker said if anybody would like to talk to her about Dad that you can call her any time She would love to answer any questions and concerns you might have. Her
name is Lynn Fecht and the Carthage Hospice number is 217-357-3222 Quincy number is 1-877-627-7610 just ask for her and they will probably send you to her voice mail just leave a message and she will call you back. as well as the psychologist is there for any of the family members for counseling or just a listening ear there is no charge for her services.
attached you will see pictures of the room where Dad's bed is and just a few other shots. Our cat Mr. Tickles who drools when he is happy and content, a flower, and a picture of our Dog Dipper who we had to put to sleep last month. He was about 10 years and had congestive heart failure and a huge mass in his chest cavity the vet said was probably cancer. We Love you and will miss you Dipper.
I love you all so much and want you to know I am giving Dad the best care possible.
Jo Ellen
Friday, September 24, 2010
24 Sept. 2010
Well Dad seems to be settling in just fine. He seems calm and content. We have music playing for him almost all day and we talk to him when he is awake. his appetite is good right now. The Hospice nurse was here today to take vitals and such she said he is in good hands and he looks great. I am adjusting to the new schedule and I am doing OK.
Love you all if any one would like to call me a d discus anything my phone # is 217-357-4898
Also we have Skype and the camera is in the same room dad is so if you wish to see how he is doing feel free
Skype name is i_b_don
Love all so you much
Jo Ellen
Love you all if any one would like to call me a d discus anything my phone # is 217-357-4898
Also we have Skype and the camera is in the same room dad is so if you wish to see how he is doing feel free
Skype name is i_b_don
Love all so you much
Jo Ellen
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
21 Sept., 2010
Well It is about time I update all of you. I am truly sorry it has taken me so long. Dad is doing fine he is stable and has even gained 2 pounds. Hospice says not to read much into it though he has a tendency to fluctuate 2-4 pounds either way. it depends on the time of day they weigh him and if he has just eaten or not.
I appreciate more than you know all the prayers and help I received during his bad spell (all of you know who you are).
Since then there has been a few changes. After much thought prayer and consideration and counseling with nursing staff, Hospice and friends and some family ( I would have asked you all but could not reach you.) I have decided to move Dad to my home and care for him here. Hospice will be coming in 4 days a week to Bath him and watch him for a few hours while I have a break. As well as as part of his Veterans benefits he will have a home health aid to help out. I fell this is a good move. I moved him home today. and he seems to be very happy and content.
His room is in our Parlor on the main floor. it is very comfortable. Hospice provided the bed, bed table, his medicines everything I need.down to rubber gloves.
The Hospice nurse helped me set up his medications so they will be easy to dispense. and he get interaction and personal care all day.
for those of you who are wondering if I can handle it. I think I can. and if after I have tried for a
while and decide I can no longer handle it then I call the veterans home and he will be placed in the first empty bed. Then at least I can say I gave it a good try and my conscience will be clear.The hardest part will be rolling him every 2 hours. but I can do it.
I would love to hear from all of you. I hope all is well.
Love you much
Jo Ellen
Friday, August 20, 2010
I went to see Dad again yesterday his BP was 103/51 temp was 95.5
I sat for about an hour watching him sleep and he was coughing so much. I would watch him tap on his chest sort of right where his heart is and heard him moan. this I am sure is due to his coughing all the time.
They came in after that hour and woke him up to change him and get him up from his nap. after that he was sort of awake but not really he had just changed positions from what I could tell. He did not say much the only things I could make out were basically no and yes.
Hospice visited yesterday and called me as they do every week. In fact I had one call from the nurse and one from the social worker.
Hospice has also noticed the coughing and more choking on his foods and liquids. He is only eating about 50% of his food. but still looses weight. the hospice nurse and the nurses at the veterans home feel his body is at the point that it just does not absorb the nutrients effectively. thus the weight keeps going down. yesterday when I was giving him water he was choking on that and I would only give him about and inch or two from a straw. (only enough to fill the straw 1-2 inches.)
Hospice asked about putting a Dramamine type patch behind his ear to dry up his oral secretions so he does not cough while he is asleep. thus his pain will be lessened. any comments on that. This is not a life sustaining thing it is just so he won't be in pain. I know how Jon and Lee feel about it but like your input. please leave your comments . just click on comments on the bottem of this post.
I work the next 2 days so I will not be going to see dad till Sunday
Love you all
Jo Ellen
I sat for about an hour watching him sleep and he was coughing so much. I would watch him tap on his chest sort of right where his heart is and heard him moan. this I am sure is due to his coughing all the time.
They came in after that hour and woke him up to change him and get him up from his nap. after that he was sort of awake but not really he had just changed positions from what I could tell. He did not say much the only things I could make out were basically no and yes.
Hospice visited yesterday and called me as they do every week. In fact I had one call from the nurse and one from the social worker.
Hospice has also noticed the coughing and more choking on his foods and liquids. He is only eating about 50% of his food. but still looses weight. the hospice nurse and the nurses at the veterans home feel his body is at the point that it just does not absorb the nutrients effectively. thus the weight keeps going down. yesterday when I was giving him water he was choking on that and I would only give him about and inch or two from a straw. (only enough to fill the straw 1-2 inches.)
Hospice asked about putting a Dramamine type patch behind his ear to dry up his oral secretions so he does not cough while he is asleep. thus his pain will be lessened. any comments on that. This is not a life sustaining thing it is just so he won't be in pain. I know how Jon and Lee feel about it but like your input. please leave your comments . just click on comments on the bottem of this post.
I work the next 2 days so I will not be going to see dad till Sunday
Love you all
Jo Ellen
Monday, August 16, 2010
16 August 2010
Hello everyone I was visiting dad today and the funny est thing happened i thought it would be nice to here something fun today instead of all the doom and gloom. Any way I was talking to dad like I normally do and now and then he would say yes or no. but he never says much else. especially that is understandable. any way... He normaly sits there expressionless most of the time so today I asked him if I talk to much well he got such a grin on his face I could not help it I said I gues that is a yes. and just laughed. unfortunately I did not get a smile when I got the picture but you can tell there is a little one there. how fun is that.
Other than that his temp today was 85.8 bp was 117/72 .
Love you all and will keep you posted as I can.
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