| Dennis White 2004-08-14, 12:29 pm |
| I brought Evan home from the hospital this afternoon. He had been
there since about 1:30 AM Wednesday. The pneumonia he suffered from was
caused by his aspirating his food. It was only detectable because his white
blood cell count was elevated. Thank goodness it was caught so early! He
received a pneumonia vaccine-which I know will not prevent him form
suffering infectious pneumonia in the future-so the risk of viral pneumonia
is somewhat reduced. He had an assessment done on his ability to swallow.
Something I've been very concerned about for months. I knew that his
esophageal muscles were failing, causing him to choke. He kept resisting
every attempt to do anything about it. His chiropractor had him convinced
he (the chiro) was "fixing" the problem, and Evan believes that everything
the Chiropractor is not fixing is being cured by the acupuncturist. As he
gets worse and worse he is finally giving in to my insistence he get *real*
medical help. I guess it's hard to admit that your healers have been
hoodwinking you for years. The doctor a the hospital recommended all his
liquids be thickened. He is already on a blenderized diet since his
dentures are so ill-fitting he cannot chew without pain. Before I started
preparing his meals and feeding him he was living on canned soups. I'm sure
that cannot be the healthiest diet!
He still insists that he was not having delusions before being sent to
the hospital, yet he freely admits that he is very confused. I think his
not admitting his delusions is a matter of pride more than confusion though.
Despite all of this I do not believe he is so incoherent as to be a danger
to himself...aside from falling. He doesn't wander, he is still sharp as a
knife (except when he is suffering from *mini-strokes*) and his personality
is intact. Since he has a fair amount of investments/savings he can afford
to stay at home with care for at least a couple of years, but I'd still like
to get him into assisted living. So far he has refused. He believes the
Lord has told him he must stay at home. I can't very effectively argue with
that. But I continually plant ideas about why it wouyld make sense to leave
his house. It needs repairs and constant upkeep. Taxes. Too big. Too many
stairs to navigate. At least I've got him to agree that when he can no
longer walk up and down stairs he will consider moving. Unfortunately he is
not aware of how soon that will be. He fully expects that he will be
"cured". That his illness is not age-related. That he will go back to
work. The thing that makes me angry is that these ideas are not the product
of dementia. These are the things his chiropractor, his acupuncturist and
his naturopath have led him to believe for years. I agree that it is always
good to encourage each other to achieve the best e are capable of...but to
lie and mislead is quite a different thing. His healers have fed him
supplements and concoctions that are all supposed to stop or reverse aging.
He has been sold every kind of crank healing device imaginable. He has
fallen prey to every scam out there. The only course of action he *hasn't*
pursued is solid medicine. He has been convinced (by folks of the ilk that
have posted here lately) that the FDA is only out to persecute those who
have the *real* answers. That there are "secret" and "miracle" cures that
are being suppressed....except, apparently, by those practitioners who will
reveal these miracle and secrets by subscribing to their high-priced monthly
newsletters. But please don't get me wrong. I *do* have some respect for
*some* unorthodox healers. Dr. Andrew Weil seems OK to me, I guess.
Well enough of my rant for today. I am glad I have found somewhere to
share. Soon I hope I will be able to offer more support rather than seek
it. Meanwhile, it's dinner time for Evan, and I look forward to getting it
ready for him. At least in all of this I do not resent him for his illness,
or get frustrated with his demands. People ask me how I do it. Others warn
me that eventually I will become burnt out. In fact I guess I am singularly
suited to this kind of experience even though I'd rather be building or
renovating houses, which is what I have done for years. I am used to being
around illness. My mother and sister had Huntingtons Disease, so I got used
to being helpful and understanding at a very early age. In my early
thirties I took care of a friend for the last two years of his life while
his family rejected him because he had AIDS. Caring for my friend Evan, who
I really care about is old hat!
Dennis White
|