So, my mom went to the ER in the middle of the last night. I found out late this morning through a FB message from my sister. My dad went with her, stayed the rest of the night with her, and then let my in-town brother and sister know. They came to be with her so he could go home and get some rest.
She went in for heart palpitations, something she had years ago when she had a blood clot in her lung. My mother does not like doctors, hospitals, or medication, so she avoids all three. Getting pneumonia while in the hospital for the blood clot only solidified her distrust of modern medicine. I don't think she's seen a doctor since recovering on her own from the second clot. Turns out her blood pressure was sky high (like 200/300 or thereabouts), so of course they put her on meds.
This morning, after my dad left, she began to have memory problems. I've been texting with my sister, and it appears that she has anterograde amnesia. She can not get information from short term to long term memory. She keeps asking my sister why she's in the hospital, over and over again, and she's lost some of her recent memories --for instance, she doesn't remember that they got a new cat, or that they are in the middle of remodeling the kitchen. I texted my sister about the type of amnesia she has and she texted me back "I told her, but she's forgotten". My mother, one of the most generous women I've ever known, can be pretty acerbic, especially when she doesn't think much of your body of knowledge. My sister tells me that she's being incredibly kind and caring to all the doctors and nurses, and that her sense of humor has changed into one very similar to my sister's. My mother doesn't seem distressed, but my sister sure is.
All I can do is wait. She's 83; things could go either way. I'm quite hopeful that she'll be all right though. She's an incredibly strong, and strong-willed, woman. Waiting is always the hardest part.
Oh gosh, how stressful. I'll send good thoughts your way and hope that things get sorted out soon.
ReplyDeleteI hope your mom improves and gets home soon to see that cat and kitchen! (She may remember a little better once she's home.) My tough old mom is 89, intensely self-sufficient, and also had no personal physician for decades until I finally forced one on her. She didn't tell the hospital she had a daughter a mile away when she broke her hip [jumping on a branch to break it up to burn]; she drove herself to the ER when she broke her wrist [I found out days later!]; and failed to mention a fractured spine from moving a lawnmower. The worst danger is ME wringing her neck! At this point her memory for recent events is gone--but like most older folks, she can recall all kinds of things from the distant past. So I understand a bit of what you're going through--it's a scary mess. We just have to be brave and flexible, and if I can do it, Cassi, so can you. (To borrow my daughter's motto: Anybody can do anything!)
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping and praying that your mom will be okay and that your whole extended family will be able to weather the event. Waiting is very hard.
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry to hear this. I'm sending positive thoughts. I hope all will be well soon.
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