I have been blogging about my Dad’s struggle with Alzheimer’s
for four years now. My primary objective for the blog is to keep friends and
family informed. However, over the past four years the blog has revealed a
pattern of ups and downs (versus a pattern of steady decline).
This patter of ups and downs can be deceiving. We know there
is no cure for Alzheimer’s yet this pattern of ups and downs gives us a glimmer
of hope. There are days when he seems coherent and can carry a conversation (a
definite up) but you can walk out the door and return in a few minutes and he
has no recollection of your being there already (a downer).
The same pattern is revealed in his health. Back in June,
Dad had an infection on his toe, which caused great concern. If the infection
didn’t clear up there was a possibility of an amputation especially since there
is poor circulation in his foot and leg. The doctor put him on antibiotics for
14 days. If the infection did not clear up after 14 days then we would have
been faced with the decision of the amputation. All things considering, the
situation did not look good.
Then after the 14 days of his taking the antibiotics showed
the infection had gotten under control and now he is doing much better. His toe
is still kept in a dry bandage as a scab has formed and should drop off soon; a
good sign that the toe is healing.
Visiting Dad also demonstrates the ups and downs. Usually he’s
sleeping when we arrive, regardless of the time of day. Some days he is dressed
and sitting in his wheelchair. One visit in July had Dad in a very bad mood, so
bad that the visit only lasted about 5 minutes. It was very depressing.
Recently, however, Dad was in a good mood on a special day
when Bruce, his “middle child,” came for a visit from Southern
California with his wife Bonnie, her sister Sheryl and husband
Paul.
During the visit, Bruce and I attempted to call Joyce but
she didn’t answer. As siblings do, we wanted to play a trick on her by having
Bruce call instead of me as she expects. Well, after two attempts by Bruce and
one by me, we realized we didn’t a message. When she finally checked her phone
and saw missed calls from both her brothers, well, yes, she panicked. After
reassuring her all was well she spoke with Dad.
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| Bruce's visit with Dad on August 9, 2014. |
Yesterday was the regular Care Meeting at the nursing home
where the staff gives the family an official update on Dad’s condition. Shelley
and I were unable to attend but Tabitha and Venice attended. Tabitha then recapped the
meeting for me saying that Dad’s weight is holding steady at 132 lbs, he is
eating well (approximately 75% of his food), he usually eats breakfast in bed
but then has lunch and dinner in the dining room.
So the pattern of ups and downs continues. Till next time!
