lots to ponder

so the last couple weeks have been a bit whirlwind-ish. in the midst of our little family of 4 wishing and dreaming to make some exciting changes, toying around and finding ourselves consumed with all our ideas... my dad lands in the hospital a very sick guy.

Last week my mom took him to the ER in a very sick state and he was determined to have pneumonia and diabetic ketoacidosis. now considering my dad had not even been diagnosed with diabetes yet, this is not a good way to find out. his blood sugar was at 400 and they began a heavy regimin of insulin. meanwhile he remained dillusional and slept quite a bit for the first 3 days. because of the diabetic state, he will require insulin therapy for several weeks after he's discharged and will hopefully be able to maintain the disease by diet alone. i'm not optimistic on that last part. my dad already cannot understand why he can't have kool-aid and donuts and pie and ice cream and burgers and fries... the list goes on! he got himself into quite a few crappy eating habits this last 30yrs! so because of the brain damage and his inability to remember these new and very important details, it is being recommended that he receive a higher level of care so that his diet and medication can be monitored. So he remains in the hospital until his blood sugar can be regulated and more tests continue to be performed. the way i saw it and which seems to be proving itself, is that with the little information that was handed to me when i took over, we really are starting from scratch. diseases of the blood, immune system, heart... everything is being looked into further. and Case Managers are working their magic to find a place that will accept his modest form of payment: medicare and medi-cal. so his story is still being written and we have yet to know the ultimate outcome of it all. it is very helpful to have a support system (for both me and my dad).. my mom has been an exceptional asset along with 2 of my uncles who live locally who are also doing and offering anything they can.

and as of saturday, my dad is pretty 'deceivingly' healthy. he's back to his old self, hollering at neighboring patients to turn their tv's down, calling me with his lists of things he thinks he needs (all things that have nothing to do with his stay in the hospital) and even returning to his sleepwalking ways... lastnight he got up to use the bathroom, walked out of his new room (that he now shares- UH-OH), proceeded into the adjoining patient room and peed on the floor! so thankfully the staff saw the need and have provided a 1 on 1 aid that has been spending the majority of her time, by his side.

... until next time. i'm sure i'll plenty more exciting things to share! =