Update on My Mother

We have spent the past five days at the hospital with my mother. Since we checked my mother into the hospital her heart has been constantly monitored, she has had three CAT scans, one EEG, daily speech and physical therapy and been put on and off a number of new drugs. Also, the manufacturer of her three-month-old pacemaker have been in doing something or other (apparently they have a number of units that are failing and killing patients). It has been very difficult for us to get any word from the doctors, until last night when we talked to all three of them (she has one for her heart, one for her brain and one for the rest of her).

A few days ago they had her on cumadin to thin her blood. She got a phone call and lightly hit herself in the cheek when answering the phone. Within a few minutes the whole area under her eye was black and bloated with blood. They took her off the cumadin as she is blind in one eye and very disoriented as a whole right now.

Yesterday they put her back on the cumadin as her heartbeat is extremely erratic. The doctors now believe that the erratic heartbeat triggered the stroke and could trigger another one if they don't get it under control. Her heart doctor said that Mom will not be going home until it is under control, which means she will spend at least two more days in the hospital. The neurologist could not find the results of one of the CAT scans, but is sure they will turn up soon. She also said that the EEG showed a lessening of brain activity on the left side, which is exactly what they expected.

The night nurse told us tonight that so far the cumadin has not corrected Mom's erratic heartbeat. The pacemaker is pacing her a lot of the time and then it goes up quite a bit as well.

My sister and her fiance are still here, but he will be going back to Oregon on Sunday, the same day my brother from Washington flies down. I have a brother in Nevada that is planning on coming next weekend and a brother in Texas who is still deciding when will be the best time to come.

The hospital is draining the life out of all of us as we spend 8-12 hours a day there. My sister and I were there yesterday evening and the TV was on in Mom's room and Gladiator was on. My Mom kept looking at the screen and finally said, "This looks interesting, too bad we can't hear what is being said." I went over and turned up the sound. We then showed her for the umpteenth time how to adjust the volume and she shook her head as if to say, "That is too complicated for me to learn." Some things have changed, but she was very much like her old self last night, which right now is the best we can hope for I guess.