Last Wednesday...
Last Wednesday, at our house, it was far from peaceful. My dad got up as usual and got his cereal. He looked and the bathroom door was shut and, presumably, the occupant was my grandmother. He sat down to eat and after a few minutes came down the hallway to check on Nannie. I woke up to hear him knocking on the door and saying, "Momma?" When he opened up the door, she was sitting on the floor, helplessly looking up at him. My mom called the ambulance and we waited, realizing after a couple minutes that she had had a stroke.
Nannie was taken to Roanoke and Mom & Dad followed the ambulance. I stayed at home and manned the phone line until they got her checked into the ER. I ran a couple errands and went up there with lunch in hand, since I knew Mom & Dad would be hungry by then.
I was concerned, but it didn't strike me hard until the doctor came and talked with us. The first decision that had to be made by Dad and my aunts was whether Nannie should be revived if she were to go into cardiac or respiratory arrest. He explained how it is more difficult for an older person to bounce back from that and the risks of bruising and/or breaking ribs. The final decision on that ended up being no.
Now, the decision that is still waiting to be made is about a feeding tube. Nannie is able to swallow, but she isn't eating enough to give her the nutrition she needs. I told my mom that, at this point in time, a feeding tube would be wise. It would help Nannie to gain strength and, hopefully, recover from this ordeal. However, I also went on to say that, if a few months down the road if no improvement happened, the feeding tube should be removed, because, from what I've gathered, I don't think Nannie would want to live that way permanently. And, Mom told me Dad pretty much told her the same thing as they drove home.
One of my concerns on this is, if the feeding tube is inserted and no improvement happens 3-4 months down the road, will everyone agree on removing it, or will they still be clinging to hope and claiming that the ones wanting to remove it are killing her? It's a very difficult situation... The doctor explained to Dad that not choosing the feeding tube didn't mean that we'd be starving her to death. Mainly, what would happen is that her body would slowly dehydrate, sodium levels would rise and she'd slip into a coma before expiring (still hard to think about). There's no easy decision here and being that Nannie isn't able to communicate, it is about assuming what she wants.
So, that's the run down of the decisions needing to be made. Nannie has had a some good times during the past week. She recognized Cathy, Kelly, and Paul when they came. And, she did do well eating for Jodi yesterday. I am hoping that she recovers, but the question in my mind if she doesn't is, "Will I be strong enough and able to let go?" Right now, I don't know the answer....
Anyhow, please keep my family in your prayers. I have to admit this has been difficult as I am preparing for next year....
Nannie was taken to Roanoke and Mom & Dad followed the ambulance. I stayed at home and manned the phone line until they got her checked into the ER. I ran a couple errands and went up there with lunch in hand, since I knew Mom & Dad would be hungry by then.
I was concerned, but it didn't strike me hard until the doctor came and talked with us. The first decision that had to be made by Dad and my aunts was whether Nannie should be revived if she were to go into cardiac or respiratory arrest. He explained how it is more difficult for an older person to bounce back from that and the risks of bruising and/or breaking ribs. The final decision on that ended up being no.
Now, the decision that is still waiting to be made is about a feeding tube. Nannie is able to swallow, but she isn't eating enough to give her the nutrition she needs. I told my mom that, at this point in time, a feeding tube would be wise. It would help Nannie to gain strength and, hopefully, recover from this ordeal. However, I also went on to say that, if a few months down the road if no improvement happened, the feeding tube should be removed, because, from what I've gathered, I don't think Nannie would want to live that way permanently. And, Mom told me Dad pretty much told her the same thing as they drove home.
One of my concerns on this is, if the feeding tube is inserted and no improvement happens 3-4 months down the road, will everyone agree on removing it, or will they still be clinging to hope and claiming that the ones wanting to remove it are killing her? It's a very difficult situation... The doctor explained to Dad that not choosing the feeding tube didn't mean that we'd be starving her to death. Mainly, what would happen is that her body would slowly dehydrate, sodium levels would rise and she'd slip into a coma before expiring (still hard to think about). There's no easy decision here and being that Nannie isn't able to communicate, it is about assuming what she wants.
So, that's the run down of the decisions needing to be made. Nannie has had a some good times during the past week. She recognized Cathy, Kelly, and Paul when they came. And, she did do well eating for Jodi yesterday. I am hoping that she recovers, but the question in my mind if she doesn't is, "Will I be strong enough and able to let go?" Right now, I don't know the answer....
Anyhow, please keep my family in your prayers. I have to admit this has been difficult as I am preparing for next year....