Saturday, February 26, 2005
Visited Grandma....
Dan went with me and my dad, my sister and her fiance. The hospice is part of the same group that took care of my mom eight years ago. This is a newer branch...they placed her there because she has been living in nursing homes for a few years and has no "home" to go to.
The rooms there are a bit like hospital rooms except that they are painted blue with nice stenciled borders. Grandma's roommate has been there for awhile and has lots of personal items around her. There is a bird feeder outside the window that gets lots of use.
Grandma doesn't open her eyes very often....she seems somewhere between asleep and awake much of the time. When she does wake up, she is frightened because she doesn't know where she is due to the advanced Alzheimer's. She tries to cough but does not have the strength.
She is not on any medication, although they will administer pain medicine if they think she's hurting. She will not eat, but they will not force her to. The staff seems plentiful and attentive, so I'm ok with her being there.
She did try to speak to my dad, but he couldn't understand anything she said. Something interesting happened when I went to leave though. I told her I loved her and she very clearly said, "Yes."
She will have lots of visitors with four children, eight adult grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren. So I know between all of us and the staff that someone will let me know if she gets any worse when I am not there. It's sad to be sure, but I am doing all right mentally.
The rooms there are a bit like hospital rooms except that they are painted blue with nice stenciled borders. Grandma's roommate has been there for awhile and has lots of personal items around her. There is a bird feeder outside the window that gets lots of use.
Grandma doesn't open her eyes very often....she seems somewhere between asleep and awake much of the time. When she does wake up, she is frightened because she doesn't know where she is due to the advanced Alzheimer's. She tries to cough but does not have the strength.
She is not on any medication, although they will administer pain medicine if they think she's hurting. She will not eat, but they will not force her to. The staff seems plentiful and attentive, so I'm ok with her being there.
She did try to speak to my dad, but he couldn't understand anything she said. Something interesting happened when I went to leave though. I told her I loved her and she very clearly said, "Yes."
She will have lots of visitors with four children, eight adult grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren. So I know between all of us and the staff that someone will let me know if she gets any worse when I am not there. It's sad to be sure, but I am doing all right mentally.
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