I just googled to see if any conditions mimic alcohol withdrawal, and found a case report about a man who had delirium from encephalopathy caused by sepsis; the sepsis was a result of an abdominal infection. Dad's case sounds very similar -- he clearly has encephalopathy (I read his chart) and is very anemic because he's been passing blood via his GI tract. If he's losing blood because of an abscess, it could be causing sepsis, leading to the encephalopathy and delirium.

Oh, Teppy. I'm so sorry. That's just so hard.

Oh, Tep, that must be so hard. I'm so sorry.

I'm so sorry, Teppy. Grateful that you have the Dad Whisperer by your side. The delirium from encephalopathy caused by sepsis theory sounds very likely, but knowing that there is a medical cause doesn't do a lot to soften the blow of his lashing out.

eta: and wow I typed their instead of there originally and nearly caused you additional pain!

You have all my sympathy Teppy--it sounds a lot like what we went through with my dad. He did have a psychotic break as part of the progress of his dementia. We called the ambulance and they took him to the hospital. When we got there about an hour later they had him in a room, strapped down naked on a bare mattress, and none of the nurses would deal with him. He pulled off the clothes they tried to dress him in, and ripped the sheets off the bed.They agreed to keep him off the psych ward if a family member was with him at all times, so B, Mom, and I split the 24 hours so we could Dad-sit until they got a drug regimen in him that kept him calm.

It was Mom who had scary auditory hallucinations. It sucks dead hairy bears when your parents suddenly turn into strangers with problems.

Go on your vacation. Trust the medpros to handle the situation. Give your husband a grateful hug from a Buffista for being a mensch and shouldering some of the load, and spoil each other silly while you're on your trip.

Go on your vacation. Trust the medpros to handle the situation. Give your husband a grateful hug from a Buffista for being a mensch and shouldering some of the load, and spoil each other silly while you're on your trip.

Absolutely! What the wise woman said. Steve had that type of psychic break when he was ill and his lashing out at me was nearly unbearable. The doctors made me leave and his friends took over the visit watches to spare me some of it. Thankfully he didn't remember after it passed. Knowing what it was helped, but not completely.

Separate post to send most sincere happy birthday wishes to dear Karl! I hope you happen by to see that we are thinking of you and hoping that this is a delightful year for you.

Teppy, I’m so sorry. I can’t imagine how hard that must be for you. Sending you and your dad all sorts of good thoughts. I hope they find the cause of all of this and it is something easily treatable.

Yikes! I hope they're able to identify the problem and get a treatment working quickly, Teppy!

Happy Birthday Karl!

That's so rough, Teppy. My Dad has had some hallucinations as part of the dementia he has from Parkinson's and it's disturbing but not nearly as scary as what's going on with your dad. I'm so glad you have a partner like Tim to support you.