A Tough Day For Her Today

The past year of medical misfortunes has taught my sister a horrible lesson; always expect the worst. Her glass is always half empty when it comes to her health.

Today was a tough one. Actually it started last night when she threw up. That's a tough one when you haven't eaten since last Tuesday. No one from the family was there. Her surgeon saw her this morning and didn't seem concerned. When I left tonight she was clutching the bag she would throw up in; she was asleep at the time.

But by the time I got there today she was sure she was headed down the same awful path of 2008. Her pain was high and she was shaking. I finally got the nurse to give her some atavan; that calmed her down so she could sleep. Then when the pain got bad her husband and I got her epidural meds increased. Does anyone out there know what a "bolus" is? Anyway, she had a bolus of the epidural stuff. That helped a lot.

The problem is that she has trouble telling the nurses what she needs. They can't help her if they don't know. Finally they've noted on her chart that she has trouble asking for help.

Then they were concerned about her urine output. The minute she heard that she was sure she was headed for dialysis and didn't want to go there. Her husband calls her the queen of pessimism. After what she has been through, it's easy to see why. Our job is to override the pessimism and keep her focused on the moment.

Turns out her urine output is just fine. She's really thin and shouldn't be putting much out.

Tomorrow will be another day. We just need to try to get her to focus on the moment she is in. That's a tough one for her. So we need lots of prayers, energy and Reiki tonight and for the next few days.