Thursday 9 November 2023

Time to relax

A slightly blurry photo of a recent walk (up by the lake).


Well, having been told every hour or two hours to phone back in an hour or two hours, we finally had a phone call just after 8 p.m. to say Keith was fine and to come and pick him up.  By then Tam was nearly here from Aberystwyth.  I had put fuel in our car to get to Hereford, but Tam said she had psyched herself up for the trip and knew I didn't enjoy driving at night (I don't but would do anything for Keith) and her car was easier for Keith to get in and out of.  So she drove, and we picked him up and he was blardy glad to see us having been sat in a wheelchair (which kills his neck, and that was already sore and very painful) for 8 hours.  Despite my telling the nurse at reception that he had Parkinsons and HAS to be kept hydrated, he only had some water when he waved his pills at a passing nurse and said he needed a drink to get them down.  I also told another nurse he had no-one to get him any food - oh he would be given food.  Really?  Why lie to me - if I knew he'd been so totally abandoned, I'd have gone there hours earlier.  I will know another time and be beside him as his advocate.  Mind you, Keith is going to refuse point blank if this scenario happens again.

        We got home at about 11.30 p.m. and it was chucking it down with rain - by the time Keith got out of the car, I had to swipe a pool of water from the wheelchair seat and our coats didn't dry out until I hung them over hot radiators this morning.  He had taken extra Sinemet, knowing he would need something to help him with the journey home and getting upstairs to bed.  Those worked and he managed the stairs, but gosh, we were all so relieved to tuck him up in bed.

        It's his birthday today so I've been out for some lovely stewing steak from the butchers, which is already in the slow cooker and we will eat early, so Tam can get away before it's dark, as she has that long journey through the mountains.

        A couple of good things from yesterday - the Dr said Keith had good lungs, because he used to be a runner, and that would stand him in good stead.  He also said that Keith was under-medicated, and also that he should look into taking CBD oil as he thought it would really help with the Parkinsons.  I've done some initial research, and the Parkinsons website says it's just at the experimental stage.  We shall see what else we can find and mention it to the GP etc.  I can already imagine what the PD nurse will say!

        A drive out to the Elan Valley may happen after lunch, but sadly the sunshine we woke up to has been replaced by rain and grey skies.  Thank you for all your support yesterday and apologies for the blow-by-blow account, but it is too stressful to keep it all to myself.



27 comments:

  1. Happy Birthday Keith! Enjoy your dinner. Glad you are home from the hospital. Bun in USA

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    1. Thanks Bun. He's sleeping late this morning, catching up after all the stresses at the hospital which exhausted him.

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  2. When waiting and waiting in various hospitals we found there often seems no passing on of information between shifts of staff.
    Thank goodness Keith is home again. Relax now, get your strength back

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    1. Indeed. The nurse I spoke to earlier sounded caring - the one on the later shift very brusque and "leave us alone" - she was the one who said "phone back in two hours" in a very get-rid-of-her tone. Relaxed with a film yesterday afternoon.

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  3. Happy Birthday to Keith x glad you had T there and you all got home alright. CBD oil is a very good suggestion from the Doc. I found it to be vile and I am more open than most to alternative tasting anything’s LOL I would opt for a patch as I really don’t think you would find Keith would like the taste and clearly a capsule could prove difficult with his swallowing issues. I mean to get patches to see if they can help alleviate the excruciating joint pain I get - thanks fleeing oestrogen lol.
    Many people use it for all manner of things to great success. Hopefully after the Dr has said he’s not on enough medication the surgery can go back to basics and re look at what they are giving him.
    Do check out that Pharmacy to You as well Jen, it’s so much easier than going to the chemists. I’ve never ever had an issue with it and I swear when they email the surgery’s the surgery’s respond quicker than we do it direct…..much love Danette xx

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    1. Thanks Danette. We are going to try the CBD oil, and hopefully Keith will cope with the taste! He can swallow easily when he's not tired but being under-medicated means we get to mid afternoon and he really goes downhill. The GP won't prescribe any Parkinsons meds - that is down to the PD Nurse . . .

      I will check out Pharmacy to You but if it IS the Surgery getting the prescriptions wrong we won't be any better off!!

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  4. Happy Birthday Keith. Enjoy your special dinner that's been cooked for you tonight.
    Don't get me started on nurses, pill taking times, and food. I could tell you some real horror stories about how my poor defenseless mother was treated when she was in hospital. I just want to curl up into a ball and cry my eyes out every time I think of how badly some of the nurses treated her And the same goes for my father in a different hospital. I don't think I will ever forgive them
    I see my specialist next week, and CBD is one of the things I want to address with him.

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    1. Thanks Debbie. I think he enjoyed his day - although the beef must have been old dairy cow as it was still fighting back when we ate it and I will have to pressure cook it to death today.

      How distressing for you when your mum was so poorly treated in hospital. Your dad too. WHY do these nurses become nurses when they have no empathy or wish to help sick people?

      I'll be interested to hear what your specialist says about the CBD next week - Keith says he's going to take it anyway, whatever the PD nurse says!

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  5. As an 86 y.o., I have found CBD oil to be very helpful for arthritis pain. Highly skeptical to begin with but it has proved to out perform other treatments for me. All good wishes for you all on your Journey. Julia in Texas

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    1. Hi Julia, thanks for this helpful comment about the efficacy of the CBD oil. I hope it will help Keith.

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  6. Happy Birthday Keith.. glad you all got home safely. Interesting about the CBD oil, I’ll look into that for P. He is still hobbling around with his thigh muscle going into spasm. The physio has been today so we’ve got some exercises to do!

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    1. Hi SueJay. Thanks for the birthday wishes. I hope that the CBD oil will work for P too. Has your husband seen a Chiropractor? We have had a lot of help from ours down the years.

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  7. Happy birthday Keith. I would be inclined to try the cbd. There are some really amazing you tube videos. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNT8Zo_sfwo

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    1. What an interesting link - and just one drop! Nothing to be lost and we checked to see if there was any interaction between it and the meds he's on, but just two comments that he might become sleepy.

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  8. Sending Happy Birthday Wishes to Keith, I bet he was glad to be home. We have had a lovely day weatherwise, so I managed to mow the lawns, they look a bit chewed but will do. Enjoy your stewing steak. Hugs Gill Xx

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    1. Thanks Gill. He was certainly VERY glad to be home and will refuse point blank to be carted off in an ambulance again (not good news if he actually does need to another time). No lawn mowing here - it keeps raining EVERY day! The steak will be reincarnated today when I pressure cook it into relaxation:)

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    1. Thanks gz - never has home seemed so welcoming.

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  10. I'm a nurse and always feel sad when I hear about patients getting substandard care, despite how busy the emergency room is. I'm glad your husband is home and safe.

    My daughter has MS and uses CBD oil daily. She doesn't seem to suffer any ill effects from it and you can titrate how much you want to take.

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    1. Pixie - you sound like the sort of nurse there should be MORE of. They seemed overwhelmed with "customers" at A&E.

      Interesting to hear how your daughter benefits from the CBD oil - though I am sorry to hear she has MS. The human body is a wonderful thing until one little molecule goes rogue.

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  11. Happy birthday to Keith! I'd listen to the doctor who suggested the CBD. I know several people who swear by it for some relief.

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    1. Thanks Celie and we are. I pray it will be a game-changer - I will keep you posted.

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  12. My husbands cousin took CBD oil for his Parkinson's. It did seem to help him a little.

    God bless.

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    1. Thanks Jackie. Let's hope it will help Keith too - the traditional medications aren't helping much but he doesn't have the standard tremors type of Parkinsons.

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  13. Try the CBD oil.

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  14. Sending birthday wishes to Keith, I bet he is SO glad to be safely home for his birthday.

    What a way for them to treat him at the hospital, I bet he felt totally abandoned by the staff. I understand the shortages they are going through, but a few glasses of water and something to eat would have taken moments. I hope he can enjoy his day today, and yes CBD oil is definintely worth a try, so many people seem to recommend it for all sorts of health issues.

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