Jun 23, 2006 13:39
Mom's first three days in the hospital were kind of rough. There were lots of tests that needed to be done at what seemed like random times, and her pain caused her to get little sleep on Monday and Wednesday nights, although she did have a somewhat better night on Tuesday. Yesterday evening when I visited, she was doing somewhat better, which was enormously encouraging for my father and myself. She started the actual chemotherapy on Wednesday evening, and as of last night was not suffering from any sickness or other side effects. Hopefully she is doing as well or better today - I will be visiting again later this afternoon.
Even with the best care, though, there are so many things about being in a hospital that cause Mom stress. There are frequent visits and tests when she wants to rest. When she wants help, there may not be anyone around immediately because they are busy with other patients. In any case, Mom dislikes asking other people for help if there is any chance of her being able to do something herself. She doesn't like being bedridden, she doesn't like feeling dependent. She feels embarrassed to have people looking at her in just a hospital gown instead of proper clothes. She has to have someone unplug and wheel the pole with the IV devices that are attached to her on it. Simple tasks take a major effort. This is her first really long stay in a hospital in her life - the only times that she spent any nights in a hospital before were when she gave birth to me and my brothers. Mom is capable of feeling guilty for almost anything (a trait that I have inherited), and she actually seems to feel guilty that she is not up on her feet and active, in spite of the condition she is in.
It is far from a good situation, but I hope that the improvement that we saw yesterday is continuing today.