Well, let's see.
Ken had another stroke on December 25th. We didn't know that's what it was. He was having really severe headaches, and we couldn't get his doctor on the phone, so we decided to drive out to Fair Oaks Hospital ER in the hopes they could give us a Rx for something.
When we got there, they ran a CT scan and did some blood work and said that everything was fine there. (They wanted to check for cranial bleeding). And the on-call doctor for our surgeon said she wanted to take and MRI and MRA just to be safe, so she asked the Hospital to transfer Ken to Fairfax hospital.
We went over there, the did the MRI and the MRA, and we waited. Finally, they informed us that Ken had had another stroke. The decided to increase his blood pressure medicine and move him to the Neurological ICU.
He was there until about the 31st, and then they moved him into a semi-private room in the stroke center.
They put him on a dilaudid IV drip into a central line with a button he could use to give him a boost of medicine when needed. They slowly moved him off of that over to oral medication - 20mg of oxycotin three times a day, and 4mg of dilaudid every 3 hours. Then Monday afternoon, January 4th, they sent us home.
He is doing well and his pain is well managed. I am worried about him being on that many narcotics, but I guess we have no choice.
We fight constantly now. He has become very emotional, and he swings from very depressed to very angry and back again in the span of a half an hour. I don't know what has happened to me, but I feel like my compassion has run out. He is so unappreciative of everything. I can't tell you the lengths I had to go to to find a speech therapist to visit the house for him, and when she came, he said, he doesn't like her, and wants a new one. I thought she was fine, and is the only one I can get to come here, and she has to drive from Ashburn to get here (two towns over).
He doesn't want to take his pills. He challenges EVERYTHING. He blames me for keeping pills away from him. He wants to take the dilauded every 2 hours, which I think is pretty dangerous, but I just don't care anymore. He took three of them at some point in the middle of the night last night.
If he was a child, I could assert some authority, but he is grown person. I don't know what I am going to do.
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Todd, I'm so sorry to hear this. First off, you have to know that it's most likely all the meds that Kenny is taking that is causing the wild mood swings. i know this doesn't make it any easier for you but you know that your kenny wouldn't treat you this way if he were himself. I couldn't imagine what I would do in your place, you have been a rock for Ken through this and he is blessed to have you. hang in there, get as much 'Todd" time as you can and above all, keep your humor, it will get better. We love you.
ReplyDeletepete andjimmy
Todd,
ReplyDeleteI left you a reply on your notice on face book, however, I wanted to reinforce here that everyone does understand to some degree what you are going through.
I pray for you and Ken all the time and know that God's will is being done, no matter how hard that may be on you at this time. There's a reason for everything and I know that the sun will come back into your life if you just believe!!
I wish I could do more for you guys...I know a break now and then would be good for you both. Just know that I do think of you and you are never alone.
I love you Todd and am so very proud of the person you are!!
Love Aunt Linda