Munroe's lurking again. [link]

My dad's in the ER again. Same as last time: he was exhibiting signs of a stroke but it turned out to just be dehydration.

My siblings are going to have a talk with the nursing home (where he's been recovering from the surgery) about why they can't seem to keep him hydrated.

It may be time to look into another nursing home ASAP. It may just be that he's a difficult patient, but it could also be bad nursing.

The only other nursing home close by is the one my dad doesn't want to go to because of poor care he received there. So I dunno what we're gonna do. Maybe one in Appleton (45 minutes away) would be better despite the distance.

Also, this morning I ordered a toasted bagel from the coffee shop across the street from work. The guy put the bagel slices in the toaster for a few minutes and then put them in a bag for me. The bagels? Not toasted. What's up with that?

I was too lazy to go back and have him toast the bagels for real.

Oh tommy, that is so hard. Is it possible that the dehydration might have a medical (not neglect) cause?

That's worrisome about your dad, tommyrot. Is it possible for a family member to be there with him during the day, even if it's just for a few hours? maybe your mother? If there is someone there *just for him* that person can make sure he drinks and stays hydrated.

Is it possible that the dehydration might have a medical (not neglect) cause?

Hopefully we'll find this out today. The ER wants info on how the nursing home is administering fluids, and we're gonna talk to the nursing home too.

Is it possible for a family member to be there with him during the day, even if it's just for a few hours? maybe your mother?

Probably not. My mom would need a ride there and her memory is getting pretty bad these days.

That's too bad, tommyrot. My mom was unable to feed herself, so we tried to always have someone there for at least 2 meals a day. The staff were good about helping their patients eat, I should note, but they had their hands full.

Aging parents, man, it's just so hard!

Is it possible that the dehydration might have a medical (not neglect) cause?

Hopefully we'll find this out today. The ER wants info on how the nursing home is administering fluids, and we're gonna talk to the nursing home too.

If he's peeing more than usual, or even sweating too much, that could be enough to dehydrate him, too. I hope you can get to the bottom of this!

I saw Awesome Doctor this morning for my heart-exploding blood pressure. I told him that, too: when he walked in, I said, "Well, my heart is going to explode. Or maybe my head, like in that movie 'Scanners.' I'm not sure which."

"Hold on," he said. "I want to get my phone so I can record it if it happens right now!"

He deserves the title of Awesome Doctor.

He said he's not terribly worried about my blood pressure, because it's not remotely close to stroke-level high. But it is definitely too high (it was 154/100 today, which actually made me laugh, because WHAT THE HELL, BODY???), so he doubled the dose of my blood pressure meds. Apparently the dose I had been taking for years was lower than the lowest recommended dose, so now my dose is the actual lowest recommended dose.

I asked him what could be the cause, because when a health measure changes, there has to be a reason, and if it's something I can change/prevent, I want to. He said, "You aren't going to like the reason." I said, "Don't say my weight -- I've lost weight, AND my blood pressure was normal for years even when my weight was higher!"

He said, "Oh, not weight -- you're getting old."

So I clutched at my chest and said "Nooooooo!" He laughed.

So apparently my head won't explode, and I have more drugs. No big deal. He told me it'll probably help if I can increase my workout intensity -- walking the dog is, admittedly, not the same as walking a 15-minute mile at the gym. But that's not a weight-loss thing; he said a little more exertion is good for a body that sits all day at work, which is true.