Yes, I DID just use that old Europe song as the title of this post. It’s appropriate, so don’t judge me. 😉
I have been pretty busy with mom – 3 appointments in just a week! It started last Wednesday with her follow up botox injection. She still does NOT need it in her face but it worked wonders in her arm and hand. She handled this visit amazingly well. She ended up getting a few right in the palm of her hand in order to target her fingers. There isn’t much that gets to me but for some reason watching those shots did. No, I didn’t pass out. I just felt really bad watching her squirm during the injection. She winced but never complained. She’s continues to show her strength in a variety of ways. Friday we paid a visit to her sleep doctor to discuss her CPAP usage. She feels like it’s definitely helping but she is struggling with keeping it on enough during the night. Medicare has very particular (nitpicky) rules. Hopefully she can improve those compliance numbers so that they can continue paying for her machine. Overall the doctor was happy to see that she is at least putting it on every night (she just needs to wear it longer). Today we had a follow up with the surgeon that fixed her hip. He was very pleased with what he saw. The pins have not moved and the bone is actually showing signs of healing – she’s further along than he expected her to be! The fatigue and pain that she continues to experience is completely normal. I think that actually made her feel better when she heard that. I think that she’s been thinking that something’s wrong with her because she doesn’t have a lot of energy and she can’t just get up and walk yet. Her surgeon told her that this type of injury is life-altering and will take her awhile to recover. Could be up to a year before she gets to where she was. I know that wasn’t the best news to receive but it explains a couple of things and I’m hoping helped to put things back into a realistic timeframe for her.
I found out yesterday that she was discharged from OT. That caught me completely off guard. I do not think she’s ready to be discharged and am actually quite annoyed that they didn’t keep her on schedule until the 18th (like PT). I don’t think that they have been focusing on ADLs (activities of daily living) like they should have been. When I asked the one who oversees that part of her treatment I was given an answer that I found to be completely unsatisfactory. Rather than get into it with her, I expressed my concern to someone in management. Not necessarily to have them put on the schedule but mainly to vent my concern. My feelings were justified when her surgeon wrote orders for BOTH PT and OT evals when she gets back to Morningside. Based on what I have heard about this particular therapist it’s not surprising. My impression is that she’s actually quite lazy.
Regardless, she’s set to move back to Morningside on Tuesday. I need to follow up with home health to get them started next week as well. They already got the referral, now I just need to send them the order and get them on the schedule. I’m really hoping that she can work with the therapists that she had before. They know her personality and what she’s capable of and will continue to push her so that she can get back to where she was when they worked with her last.
Mom had a visit from one of her friends yesterday and her niece is planning on seeing her this weekend as well. It’ll be great since I’m going to be away for a few days taking care of some things on our end (selling a house and dropping the kiddo off at camp). Personally, I can’t wait until she’s back at Morningside just for the socializing that she’ll get to do there. Heritage has been nice but most of the residents appear to be bed-ridden so it’s not the liveliest place to be. I think she has fun with some of the therapists but I don’t think she’s allowed to be in there unless she’s getting treatment (HIPAA and all that).
So next week will be interesting. Last day of PT on Monday, moving back to her apartment on Tuesday, hopefully therapy will be starting up at Morningside, and Cyndie comes to visit! She’s planning on staying with mom in her apartment for the weekend. That should be a lot of fun. Hopefully Cyndie can help make the place cozier for her and feel more like a home.