Friday and Saturday Update

August 1 & 2
by Karen and Daniel

Friday was another sleepy day for Doreen. They gave her a sleeping pill once again last night; therefore, she could barely wake up throughout the day. Only one therapist came to try to work with her. An occupational therapist woke her up by sitting her on the side of the bed. She then worked with her balance and led her through some arm exercises. Mom/G'ma had a hard time staying awake, but she persevered as well as she could. She showed her sense of humor throughout the session by teasing Daniel -- and anyone else in the room. She did wake up some in the afternoon. She held conversations with us for awhile, but was still rather foggy most of the time. The CEO worked with Mom/G'ma during meals again. She continued to get Mom/G'ma to eat more bites than we probably would have been able to get in her.

Parker came to visit again late in the afternoon. He stayed with Dad/G'pa while we went to Camp Mack to pick up Cameron from his week there. They had a nice dinner together and ran a few errands before heading back to North Manchester for the night. Judy also returned to North Manchester Friday night.

Saturday's visit was made by 5 members of the Myers clan - Dad/G'pa, Judy, Cameron and the two of us. When we arrived, we received the unwelcome news that Mom/G'ma had vomited when taking some medication this morning. (The medicine is a liquid that tastes very bitter. It is intended to stimulate her appetite!?) The good news is that she was awake most of the day! She had her eyes open and rested only periodically for short times here and there. It was great to be with her throughout the day and feel as though the real Doreen was with us. She asked lots of questions of the boys about their camp experiences. She asked Daniel to show her some things on the computer. She talked to us about what has happened over the last two months and about what is coming in the future. She was very playful with the occupational therapist when he visited. She had two more episodes of vomiting, but they were not overwhelming. She was able to control them and they did not get in the way of continuing with whatever activity she was in at the time. She also ate again today without complaining. She didn't consume much, but she ate what she could. All in all, this was a great day!

We got to speak with the doctor on Saturday morning. We asked that he discontinue the sleeping medications and the stimulants to see what Mom/G'ma can work out on her own. (It was frustrating to feel that she was always fighting the effects of one of the drugs - either fighting to stay awake through the effects of a sleeping pill that lasted too long or trying to relax and sleep despite the effects of the stimulant.) He agreed; therefore, we'll monitor how she does without these interventive medications over the next few days.

A note about Dad/G'pa -- He paid the deposit on a room at Timbercrest on Friday. Linda and Lee will bring a truckload of furniture and household items to North Manchester on Sunday. Dad/G'pa will move in to the one bedroom apartment (B7) as soon as he can get the required physician's exam completed. We will try to get that done ASAP so he can begin to have a place to call his own and move on into the next phase on his life.