More or Less Stress

for August 17-18^th #11

 

Hello,

 

Brian said, “Dad peed three more times. This is unacceptable because no one has come to get him dry. I am going to speak to them on the way out.”

 

At my look, he added, “I will be diplomatic.”

 

As I got settled in the chair I noticed that Leroy’s cold, blue, feet were uncovered. When I reached to pull the sheet down, I could feel the wet. Then I felt at the top and he was wet almost up to his armpits. I just sat there contemplating life. When no one came I buzzed for help. The response was, “We have a lot of critical cases right now so it will be a while.”

 

I just wish I knew what to do to get him some dry sheets. I cannot tell you how much longer it was before someone came, but I know that the total wet time was more than two hours. I was cold in this room, and I could not imagine how Leroy felt.

 

When someone did come to change him, she asked him to roll over and he would not/could not do that. She moved him and got off the wet stuff and dry on. Then she said, “You will have to have a catheter or a diaper (She called it something else, but I cannot remember the name.)We cannot come in and take care of this.”

 

Leroy became quite agitated at this. So she just left a urinal or whatever they are called. I managed to help Leroy get it in the container two times.

 

I had thought we might get to a room sooner. But after she left we were alone for a long, long time. Leroy started to talk a bit more in the whispery voice. He told me to tell many people good-bye since he would never see them again. Then he said, “Don’t you cry.”

 

I did not really think he was going to die, but I was afraid he would never be a sane person again. I felt like crying because of helplessness.

 

I gave Leroy my light blanket, head pillow, and knee pillow since he had none of those things. I persuaded him to roll over to his side so he could see me and try to rest as he said he was tired of lying on his back. After a while he actually went to sleep. I hung out on my chair reading, or texting the kids (I did not think, but I was keeping them awake.) Sometimes I put the book away and rested my head on the bar on his bed. I once leaned down with my stomach on my thighs because I was afraid that I would fall asleep and fall off my chair. I did sleep a little in this extreme forward position.

 

When Leroy woke up at three in the morning he started to talk and sounded much more like his usual self. The nurse came back at about four, “Your room is ready and we will move you up.”

 

Leroy said, “I would like to go home.”

 

She looked at him in astonishment and said, “What? You want to go home?”

 

She said, on her way out of the room, “I do not have the orders for that. We still want to observe you so we will take you up to the room in ten minutes.”

 

After she left, Leroy told me that I could go home. He was no longer afraid of being alone. I waited until they came to move him and then I did go home. Such a long harrowing night! The streets were still in their after storm strangeness with branches piled up in places and only a few stop lights working.

 

We believe that Leroy’s episode was from the strong dose of prednisone that he was taking. Luckily now it has been reduced two times.

 

Paula