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I can't remember the exact numbers right now, Jessie (my brain is mush tonight), but her blood pressure was good when it was checked on Tuesday and she's on meds for it, because she's had high blood pressure for years. I've got a pulse oximeter here at home now (just got it today) and it's showing exactly what I thought - with her struggling to breathe with exertion, her oxygen sat is dropping back into the high 80s, even with 3 liters of oxygen running. Once she's sitting down and not moving, she goes back up into the 90s again.
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BTW, what is her blood pressure like? I like for my mother to have a systolic of around 150. At her age it helps to get the blood to her brain.
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Susan, it does sound like heart-lung problems, especially with her O2 Sat being low. Have they checked her arteries to make sure blood is making it to her head and other places? If she has blockage in her carotids it could make her black out. I hope they can find some way to help. I hope that it is something that can be fixed.
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Mom is kind of a mixed bag between yesterday and today. Yesterday she was drowsy and not hungry in the morning - then at about 11am, her appetite returned in a big way, and she downed a bowl of soup and a dish of lasagna. Then her bowels woke up after a weeklong sleep, so the bathroom got a major cleaning after that.

Today, she's been up/down. Drowsy and no appetite again this morning, then had a decent breakfast with plenty of protein and drank a glass of juice plus some water. Sleeps much better now with the oxygen and head elevated on the hospital bed, but still gasping for breath with any exertion - like just walking to the bathroom, which is only about 22' from her chair. Called the doc's office today about that and asked if she should be on higher oxygen - they said no, because that will inhibit her drive to breathe and cause more problems, but they agree her being winded while wearing the oxygen after just walking 22' indicates something else is going on. So in addition to the MRI on Monday, she will be getting a chest x-ray. I still say *something* caused her to black out and fall out of her chair, and that *something* is still going on - they just haven't pinned it down yet. I think a cardio workup is in order, myself.
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you women are sure going thru some tough times . the loss of your parent ( s ) ages you a little bit imo . at 54 i felt middle aged , bout the same at 55 . bam . 56 and i feel like a senior citizen . it simply must have something to do with my mothers decline and death .
good luck to everyone . difficult or not its still a wonderful thing your doing for your parent .
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I guess that something we all have in common trouble is when is it dementia and when is it the person ? As dementia takes hold it becomes increasingly difficult to tell who has the upper hand at any one time. My mum has vascular and alzheimers and its like living with 3 people none of whom are very nice!
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I hate dementia!
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Veronica - MediHoney is a sterilized medical grade pure honey. Trust me, it works wonders. And you can't get it at WalMart.
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cm, I'm so sorry for your loss. Your loving care was a true gift to your mom. Prayers for you and your family.
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Never mind. Just saw her update on her profile. I'm so sorry for your loss, CM. Prayers and thoughts to you and your family...you worked long and hard for your Mom.
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Did I miss a post from CM? Have things gotten worse? I don't see an update.
At any rate....huge hugs and prayers to her.
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I agree with Jude, this sounds like it could be a UTI. My Mom starts this out of the blue and it is always a UTI, so have them do a urinalysis to find out and get her antibiotics if so. Hope all goes well.
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sanity call the doc that sounds like an infection hun
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mom talked in sleep all night .. the past two in fact.. she has to use the commode.. wants breakfast at 3 am !!then talks about all kind of off the wall stuff,, it just started.. I have sleep deprivation and my patience level has bottomed out !!!!
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I have not personally encountered the brand name "Medihoney" but do know that if using honey it needs to be unprocessed straight from the bees not off the shelf at Walmart.
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To everyone whoose burden is extra heavy today know that the rest of us care about you and are with you in spirit ready with one of those big cyber hugs
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My thoughts and prayers especially go to Countrymouse today. To Jeanette as well, and all of us other caregivers who go through so much daily.
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I have cricked my neck. I think this must be God's way of telling me to stop wandering around mother's rooms like a lost dog, have a hot shower and get to bed. And to stop tucking the phone under my chin. Thank you all for the kind thoughts and hugs, thinking of you stops me feeling existentially redundant. Hugs x
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Hang in there Jeanette.. praying for you.
And you Country Mouse
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No whines today my thoughts are with Country Mouse xxxxxx
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(((((Country Mouse)))))
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Jeannette the nurse is right sweetheart all you can do is hang in there babes xxxx huge hugs coming your way
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I ordered Medi Honey Paste/Cream.

I forgot to mention a liquid filled blister appeared on her ear lobe today. Both hands where swollen... Nurse told me to hang in there... her body is failing as well as her heart.

This just sucks man.
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Oh just a note - make sure you get the brand name "MediHoney" - there are a lot of imitators out there. But that's the brand name - MediHoney.

Lord help me. Mom's bowels woke up from their week-long sleep tonight. Oh well. I needed to clean the bathroom anyway. Right?
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You're welcome, Mallory! I hope it helps. I can't speak for what it does for anyone else, only what it did for us. I just wish we could have gotten the specialty hospital to see the light instead of reverting to the barbaric debriding of the wounds. No one deserves to go through that kind of pain in their dying days.
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Wow, never heard of Medi-Honey, I will try some asap. Thanks for sharing your experience, Susan.
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MediHoney is awesome stuff. My dad had Venous Insufficiency for most of his adult life, which all of us kids have inherited (gee thanks Dad). This means the blood and fluids pool in our lower legs and feet and don't return to the heart like they should. This leads to severe edema/swelling and then breakdown of the skin, because it gets stretched to the point of being very delicate.

Dad's legs were absolutely dead in some areas - black tissue, open ulcers and sores that wouldn't heal, etc. Horrible. His "wound specialist" (using the word lightly, I despised that incompetent boob) used UNO boots on Dad's legs. This means his legs were slathered in a skin barrier cream, wrapped in several layers of bandages and not changed for up to 2 weeks. NOT GOOD. The smell in the house was horrendous. Mom not showering. Dad not able to shower with UNO boots on. Smell from Dad's legs, which were essentially rotting away inside the UNO boots.

Dad fell in August of 2012 at home and went to the hospital. A new wound specialist was assigned and she introduced us to MediHoney. Within 2 weeks of that being used every day, Dad's dead tissue revived and new, pink, healthy tissue appeared. Sores/ulcers healed right up. It was amazing. Then, unfortunately, he took a turn for the worse in other ways and ended up in a specialty care hospital where they refused to use MediHoney, no matter how much I begged them to, and they went back to UNO boots and daily wound debriding (scrubbing dead tissue away, very painful). His last months were torture.

Anyhoo....long story short - MediHoney is nothing short of a miracle. Use it if you can. Amazon has it - so do some sellers on Ebay. I have found 2 tubes for $18-$24 on Ebay. There are 2 types of MediHoney - cream and gel - the gel tends to crystallize, because it's more pure honey than anything else - so it crystalizes just like regular honey does. You could probably warm the tube under some warm water (no microwave!) to fix that, but body heat will also un-crystallize it.

Yes, it's expensive, but it works wonders. I've laid in a supply here at home for Mom, and I use it when I have a cut or something - it's great stuff. The Egyptians knew about honey for wounds centuries ago - we're just catching on.
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Thanks for all the suggestions. She gets a lot of protein in her diet... I even add a scoop of whey protein to smoothies, which are already full of protein, actually, her morning smoothie consists of this... 1 Ensure/equal amount water. 1 large banana 1 large orange 1 handul fresh spinach 1 packet of Carnation Instant breakfast. 1 big scoop of plain Greek yogurt I will add water and cranberry juice to thin it down for her. Most days she drinks her first glass in minutes. Liquids are usually not a problem.

Susan, where did you get the medi-honey? It's rather spendy... but if it works to get this thing under control, I'm all for it. I did read where honey is recommended for them.

Boy are y'all ever so right on how quick they come on. Started as a tiny tear on the tailbone. I caught it quickly.... now this is with using a barrier cream (which we no longer use) we switched over to a barrier spray, something about the cream keeping it too moist? The spray works great and less messy. We helplessly watched that thing go from a small tear to a full blown deep ulcer. This new paste will supposedly help debride it and stop the bacteria growth which causes the odor. No, it's not infected.... it's just an awful nightmare.

Susan, very good news concerning your mother!! Awesome!


I copied what you wrote in regards to the emotions you go through with your mom... I took out the urine/peeing part as mom wasn't like that. She was a sundowner from hell and a marathon pacer - but it is so SPOT ON. The amount of emotions one goes through dealing with this is almost unimaginable.

"It's amazing, isn't it, how a sudden downturn changes our outlook. I feel terrible for complaining about Mom in the past, but it was so frustrating dealing with her stubbornness and refusal to accept the aging process before - "nope, I can walk just fine!" (said as she stumbles around and leans on things) "nope, I don't need to go to the doctor!". Now I have no bitterness or anger or irritation against her - just love and sadness.

That doesn't mean I won't get irritated again sometime, but I'm sure it wil be less so now.
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Susan I am delighted for you. It may only be temporary but creaky gates last longest hun so your mum may well have turned the corner for the time being - Boost must be what we call fortisips - I built Mum up on those build up supplements for body builders - not any with steroids in I might add! Sorry had visions of me mum in the gym lifting weights in her pull ups - thats gonna stick with me for a whiel!
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Thanks, Veronica! Yes, I do believe she may be improving some today. Seems a little more alert, not quite so tired. Still concerned about possible heart issues, but we'll see how the next day or so goes.
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