by Bookworm » August 31, 2017, 5:40 am
Much of my time has been spent "putting out (legal) fires" recently so I've fallen behind in posting up-dates.
Mike has had an additional 2 months and 15 days past the oncologist's prediction of 2 months, but his body is showing signs of rapid deterioration now.
I'm spending more time with him as he's lost interest in the computer and is taking meals in his room, rather than the dining area.
He still prefers sitting in his wheelchair but if he falls asleep, his head and neck are stressed, so care providers try to encourage him back to bed for more comfortable positions.
I hold his hand (both are in a cramped position now) and he usually responds with a squeeze.
He sucks on mini ice cubes (no crushed ice is available) to lessen his dry mouth.
He has to have oxygen all the time now, too.
Yesterday, he felt feverish and registered a temperature of 101.2, so fever-reducing therapy was begun and it came down to 100 within 30 minutes.
As I was about to leave for the night, his nurse was tending to him and he asked her, "When is my heart surgery scheduled?"
We both heard what he said but were confused, so she asked him to repeat the question, which he did.
She assured him he wasn't going to have heart surgery but his next question was, "Then why am I here?"
It wasn't easy to find the right words, but we've been honest with each other and -- until that moment -- he knew, so I said something to the effect that his body is too tired to fight the cancer any longer and that he's free to leave it behind and go on to the next level of life, but I want to be with him as much as possible until then.
Your prayers and encouraging messages remain a fantastic support system and I thank each of you for them.
Sky is lightening, so it's time to head back to Tendercare at Tawas.
Much of my time has been spent "putting out (legal) fires" recently so I've fallen behind in posting up-dates.
Mike has had an additional 2 months and 15 days past the oncologist's prediction of 2 months, but his body is showing signs of rapid deterioration now.
I'm spending more time with him as he's lost interest in the computer and is taking meals in his room, rather than the dining area.
He still prefers sitting in his wheelchair but if he falls asleep, his head and neck are stressed, so care providers try to encourage him back to bed for more comfortable positions.
I hold his hand (both are in a cramped position now) and he usually responds with a squeeze.
He sucks on mini ice cubes (no crushed ice is available) to lessen his dry mouth.
He has to have oxygen all the time now, too.
Yesterday, he felt feverish and registered a temperature of 101.2, so fever-reducing therapy was begun and it came down to 100 within 30 minutes.
As I was about to leave for the night, his nurse was tending to him and he asked her, "When is my heart surgery scheduled?"
We both heard what he said but were confused, so she asked him to repeat the question, which he did.
She assured him he wasn't going to have heart surgery but his next question was, "Then why am I here?"
It wasn't easy to find the right words, but we've been honest with each other and -- until that moment -- he knew, so I said something to the effect that his body is too tired to fight the cancer any longer and that he's free to leave it behind and go on to the next level of life, but I want to be with him as much as possible until then.
Your prayers and encouraging messages remain a fantastic support system and I thank each of you for them.
Sky is lightening, so it's time to head back to Tendercare at Tawas.