As Dad advances deeper into the abyss that is dementia there
are moments of brightness when he recalls a fragment of his identity. One such
moment occurred at a doctor’s visit on Thursday, September 24th. As
Dad is being wheeled in to the waiting room he bellows out to everyone, “I’m
from San Antonio !”
That brief statement brings smiles to my daughter and me because he remembers
his hometown, which tells us not all of his memories are forgotten.
The purpose for Dad’s doctor visit on Thursday was to follow
up on treatment he is receiving for a wound on his left foot that was not
healing properly. There was concern that there might not be enough blood flow
to the foot so a vascular surgeon was consulted three weeks ago. The surgeon
concluded that there was enough blood flow that the wound might heal on its own
with specific treatments. The surgeon also stated that given the extent of Dad’s
dementia he would not be a good candidate for surgery; in fact he could fare
worse than better with surgery. We all agreed that the best treatment would be
comfort measures, which include treating the wound and an antibiotic. If the
treatment proved to be ineffective amputation of the toe would be considered.
On Thursday the doctor observed that the wound was indeed
improving despite a problem that occurred at the care facility over the weekend
(which I will not dwell on since he is improving). The treatment with the
antibiotic and dressing are working and the doctor recommended continuing the
treatment. Another follow up is scheduled for next Thursday, October 1, 2015.
More of Dad’s Recent
Recollections & Episodes
While waiting in the examining room for the doctor to see
Dad, my daughter gave my almost three-year-old granddaughter a lollipop to keep
her occupied during the visit. As my granddaughter was sitting directly across
from my Dad we could tell he was keenly interested in what she was doing. So my
daughter asked him if he would also like a lollipop to which he responded
affirmatively. My daughter unwrapped a lollipop for him and offered it to Dad,
however instead of taking the lollipop with his hand he leaned over so she
could feed it to him.
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| Dad's great-granddaughter enjoying her lollipop. |
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| Dad's granddaughter helping him enjoy his lollipop |
After the doctor’s visit, while waiting outside for the
transport back to the care facility, Dad kept looking down and saying, “Move
your butt outta here!” Alarmed, since other people were walking by, I asked,
what was wrong. He said, “Look!” as he was gazing at the ground. He said, “Tell
them to move their butts.” I looked down and could only see some leaves. So I
brushed the leaves aside. He responded, “That’s better.”
On Sunday, September 20th, my sister and I
visited Dad at the care facility. He was in a rare, chatty mood even though he
kept nodding off to sleep. He would stare at his daughter with suspicion and asked
me, “Who is that? Is she a nurse?” He did not seem convinced when told she is
his daughter. Throughout our visit he would say things that did not make sense
to us but he seemed to know what he was talking about. At one point he asked if
we’d heard from “Uncle Bruce” (he has no Uncle Bruce but a son named Bruce). He
mentioned “Joe” but was not sure who he was (it is his brother). Then he was
chattering away with what seemed like random words and he completed his thought
by saying, “And that’s why I can’t talk to Paul.” (Paul is his other brother). Finally
out visit concluded with Dad looking at me and telling my sister, “That’s my
dad there.”
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| My Dad with his father, Pablo, his brother Paul and youngest brother Joe back in the 1940s. |
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| Dad with his brothers Joe and Paul a few decades ago. |
Back in June on Sunday the 21st we had a small
family reunion at Dad’s nursing home. Besides my wife and I, there was my
brother Bruce and his wife Bonnie, my sister Joyce, my daughter Tabitha, her
husband Kevin and Venice ,
Dad’s great-granddaughter. Dad enjoys watching Venice and she calls him “gramps.” Dad was in
a good mood and we all had an enjoyable visit.
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| Family reunion on June 21, 2015 |
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| Dad with his two boys and a girl. |
That’s my update for now and I conclude with this final
thought: getting older is definitely not always fun but amassing a lifetime of
memories is a treasure! Journal your memories, some day that might be all you
have to rely on.
