So whenever I hear my mother's voice going up in octave I go to investigate. I walk into my parents' bedroom and my father is diagonal across my parents' bed, which is not a small bed. My mom's trying to get him moved so that she can actually get onto the bed and, you know, sleep, so she can get up early to go to her radiation appointment. My father, however, has been in a bit of a dick mood for the last 2 days and was just lying there not helping or acknowledging the requests. We kept having to haul him around this way and that, him grumping and protesting the entire time, until we finally got him in a position where mom could get into bed!

It's always something.

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Eagle Whisperer

Hugs hugs hugs hugs hugs!

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-Boeke
Bird Scramble OE
155 issues - 36.5Years! - and flying high!

Even though he's had both doses of lactulose, fairly early actually, today, he's seriously loopy tonight ... tragicomedy moment, we've been in the bathroom for a while, trying to figure out what he wants, but he doesn't seem to know, and he won't sit down or lie down and he keeps walking into the bathroom ... he starts to pick up a razor, which neither of us thinks is an awesome idea ... mom asks if he wants his teeth brushed, he nods, so she tries to brush them, but he won't fully open his mouth

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Eagle Whisperer

Oh Chris, that's both funny and sad all rolled into one. Such is dementia.

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No matter how much cats fight there always seem to be plenty of kittens.

It's not dementia. It's hepatic encaphalitis (might not have spelled that right). With the liver cancer and hepatitis C his liver can't filter the ammonia out of his body properly. It builds up and overwhelms the brain and makes you hallucinate, get confused, and otherwise be crazy.

The lactulose he takes binds with the ammonia in his body and causes him to poop it out.

It also becomes less and less effective over time as the liver deteriorates and the ammonia levels get higher. That's what's happening now. :/

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Eagle Whisperer

So glad to hear that things went well today, Chris. Sending good intentions and prayers your way...

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There is no problem that cannot be solved with time, patience, and a judicious amount of high explosives.

It's kind of an hour by hour thing. Last night he was incredibly confused and needed to go to the bathroom, and it took us an hour to get him onto a toilet and going. He was convinced that the bathroom was somewhere else (who knows where) and that we weren't letting him get to it and use it. At one point we had him sitting on a toilet and he didn't believe us! Then it took a while to get him settled into bed, as he kept saying he wanted to sleep but not wanting to actually go to the bed.

Apparently after I went to bed he threw up all over, poor thing. He'd mentioned feeling sick earlier so my mom gave him a nausea pill but sometimes one isn't enough. This morning he's non-responsive, but he's so out of it that my mom easily gave him his lactulose using the dropper like one of the hospice nurses taught us. Hopefully that will help.

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Eagle Whisperer

This is going to sound strange, but I was so sick with certainty that I couldn't handle this, and I just kind of ... have. It's not fun and certainly not a bed of roses, but I have. My dad's still non-responsive. My niece and I helped my mom get a diaper on him, that was a new experience.

I guess this is trouble taking compliments. I just don't feel especially strong or anything like that. Just putting one foot in front of the other.

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Eagle Whisperer

Thanks. Last night was a trip and a half. My dad woke up JUST enough to want to get up to go to the bathroom, but he was WAY out of it and something about the delirium had him walking in a very strange way that required all 3 of us (my mom, my niece, and myself) to get him where he needed to go. Let's just say that things happened this time that we'd rather not talk about, LOL.

I'm exaggerating a little but not by much. It could have been far, far worse.

Mom had the senior care people come in today since she had the day off from radiation (everyone does, they're working on the machines). We had a whole 4 hours to run around and do whatever we wanted. Got her some stuff she was looking for, got me a belt and some sunglasses, had a nice breakfast, and picked up a nice lunch on the way home (man I LOVE honeydew bubble/boba tea). That was nice.

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Eagle Whisperer

Don't sell yourself short CW. This is tough stuff you are going through. It's just what you do for the people you love. They would/could or did do,the same for you. That is the beauty of that kind of love you don't think about it you just do it and it doesn't feel like a sacrifice. At least that how I look at it.

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No matter how much cats fight there always seem to be plenty of kittens.