So, I met with the social worker this morning and as a bonus I spoke to his dr as well.
As far as the social worker, he just wanted to know how our life was before this all happened..who did the housework, who did the shopping, did he need help with eating or bathing, how many stairs in the house. He also gave me papers to fill out for things like a medical directive (do not resuscitate) and a power of attorney. That I will have to look into but I’m pretty sure I can find that form online. I know it’s not a possibility at the moment but I wasn’t ready to talk about wills today..
His doctor is very nice and doesn’t sugarcoat anything. I appreciate that. The infection is still there but is slowly, slightly improving. They are pretty sure the infection came from him not taking care of his feet well enough. I’m a little confused by that because he had been seeing a dr every few weeks to check on them but maybe he wasn’t following doctors orders. Once the infection is gone they will work on getting his blood sugar back on track. That will be a battle down the road because the man has a sweet tooth. Not good for an insulin dependant diabetic.
Richard will not be released until he is up walking around on his own. Any physical or occupational therapy needed will be supplied as an inpatient thing. If we need help when he comes home, it will be provided as well. I am 100% confident there will be a firm plan in place the day he’s able to come home.
His mood is in the dumpster right now. I didn’t know this, but they have stopped all his depression meds. They are going to work on reintroducing them one by one and that should help with his mood.
About a week ago, they had tried moving him from his bed to a chair to see if he could sit up. He was in so much pain that they didn’t try to push it. The dr today said they want to try again and Richard said no, I won’t let you. I got a little tough on him and said they had to try. He was in a lot worse shape last time, and the dr will approve good pain meds to dull the pain. Richard is really against it, but he knows I need him to try. I don’t blame him, pain sucks, but if he doesn’t he will start to lose muscle mass and then he’ll never get out of the bed. I also guilted him a little bit by reminding him that I had to walk after my hysterectomy last year even when I didn’t want to.
I asked the dr point blank if they suspected something worse and just didn’t want to tell us and he assured me that’s not the case. He also said if a tough conversation has to happen he will tell me and not sugarcoat it.
He had a good lunch today. It was a pulled pork bun and it actually looked and smelled really good. He ate a fair bit and then was exhausted. I don’t know if I’ll see him tomorrow, but I’m going to try.
Sorry this is so long but this was a big update.
One last thing, I decided to test my immune system today..as I was leaving I gave Richard a quick kiss on the lips. It was very quick and no tonsil hockey but it was so good to have that connection for a second.
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Best wishes for tomorrow
Doctors who are no nonsense are wonderful in that the family needs to know the facts so that they can prepare for all the next steps of treatment. Sugarcoating the condition does no one justice.
