Saturday, September 7, 2024

It is DH's last day in this decade of age. Not sure what we are doing today on his birthday weekend but it will either be a hike or a visit to Provincetown. It is supposed to be overcast today but then will brighten up for the rest of the week.

The dress for DD's wedding fits great except in the chest. I have lost a lot there and even though it has a built in bra I am afraid they will slip down (like they did in the too big bathing suit I wore yesterday - yikes). I do have a sticky bra thing I bought a couple of years ago that I can try. I never used it because it didn't really work with larger breasts. Darn things.

DH and I went out fairly early last night (around 5) to an Italian restaurant near here planning to sit at the bar for dinner. It was full when we got there which surprised us because we were so early. Apparently after Labor Day they offer 1/2 price pizzas and appetizers at the bar between 4:30-5:30. The bar mostly cleared out at the end of that time. Good to know for future reference.

I finally gave the go-ahead to fix the next phase of rodent damage in my car since the claim adjuster got the information he needed. It essentially doubles the claim. Unbelievable! I will have lost almost 6 weeks of using the car by the time I get it back. Not much mileage added this year. There will be lots of dryer sheets and traps in and around my car this winter.

Time to get ready to go out to breakfast. Usually we do that on Sunday but DH is playing golf in the morning tomorrow so we are going today. Have a super Saturday!

Yesterday I had to leave school early to meet the ambulance transporting my dad to the ER. He broke down in tears at lunch saying he didn't feel well. Back at his apartment, while one of his care givers was attending to him, he exhibited symptoms of a stroke; left side of body weakness, facial paralysis on the left side, unable to stand because his left leg didn't work, and disorientation (but that could also be the dementia). After hours and hours of testing in the ER and waiting and waiting and waiting, it was determined he should be discharged and returned home. I met the ambulance back at his assisted living place and got him in his pajamas and into bed and got home just before midnight. I'm a bit tired this morning.

I must say this was the first time I was less than impressed with the level of communication we had from the ER staff and doctors. If I had not approached the nurses I'm 99% sure no one would have come to talk to me and update me on what was going on with my dad. I was really disheartened by that. The doctor who stopped in before my dad was discharged had obviously never seen my dad, nor examined him. I believe the only reason the doctor came in was to cover the hospital's legal obligation before discharge. There was clearly no human care factor to the visit and the information disseminated was rudimentary and generic.

Weight was down .5 this morning. Not surprising since I didn't eat dinner until close to midnight. I ate lunch around 11:45, so I was pretty darn hungry by then. I also chugged a bunch of water once I got to my car to drive to my dad's. I realized how thirsty I was. I hadn't taken my water bottle into the ER and had had nothing to drink for over 9 hours. YIKES!

I had to cancel my NUT appointment, which was a bummer because I wanted to talk about some dysfunctional "diet" mindset thinking.

Cancelled my grooming client for today. Have to check on dad and get the RV back to the dealership because, HALLELUJAH!, the parts finally arrived.

Not much else to report. I think that's enough, though!

• Sorry to hear about your Dad and the poor quality care he received. Hopefully he had the proper testing (a CT at the least). His symptoms certainly sounded like a stroke or TIA. Hopefully you can rest up some today!

The level of care was a-okay! He had blood work, chest x ray, CT scan, Brain MRI, EKG, and ultra sound of carotid arteries. That was not the issue. It was the lack of communication of results to the living breathing person (me) attending to my dad.

Gotcha! Glad they did the complete work up! Yeah, communication is so important too!

I'm so sorry about your dad and the care he received! How fortunate he is to have you to advocate for him.

It wasn't the care he received. That was fine, even great, all things considered. It was the lack of humanity and interest in keeping me informed.

That feels like a crucial part of "care" - making sure the people responsible for him when he leaves know what's going on.

So sorry you and your Dad went through that. My MIL had several of those trips in her last couple of years after falling into dementia. So hard when they can't really explain what is going on.

But no excuse for the hospital staff not properly communicating with you - they should know better.

166.7. Fatigue and food disinterest back full force after Thursday night injection.

Winery and band was only okay last night. Pizza was a bit too greasy for me. I ate 2 small pieces. Was able to see some people that I went to church with many years ago. None of them recognized me at first.

Today has mostly been a lazy day. Did a little grocery shopping and started the chicken chili for tonight. Bought the taco Quest chips to try with the chili. I like to scoop my chili with chips!

Glad you have been able to bring in DH's new decade with lots of celebrations Liz! Good luck with keeping the girls in line with the wedding dress. I recently bought those Cakes brand covers and they seem to work well so far. Need to wear with a fitted outfit though and yours sounds like it might not be so fitted anymore!

Hope everyone is enjoying their Saturday! Sunny but cool here, hence the chili for dinner!