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Dad admitted to hospital today (Monday 6/15/20) (home as of 6/18/20)

God be with you and your family. Be strong and courageous, Joshua 1.
I had an extremely trying day myself. Challenging times, indeed for us all.
 
Prayers for your dad, mom and you, Scott. He’s doing the best he can do right now, so you also have to do your best for you and yours.


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Looks like they will keep him at least through Friday.

There is some disagreement among the doctors about whether it is really pneumonia or something else because he is not responding to treatment as they would have expected. The end result is that the lungs are inflammed. So they are going to start him on a steroid to see if that will reduce the inflammation. They are keeping him on the antibiotics as well.

I spoke with him this morning. He is VERY bored. No visitors are allowed of course. The food is bad, which for him to say means it must be really bad because he is not typically a picky eater. He seems to be in relatively good spirits though. Today is Mom and Dad's 60th anniversary. Great way to spend it... :doh:
 
Sorry, it's always rough when parents get older and sick. Prayers coming your way.
 
Happy Anniversary to your folks, even though it's not a great way to celebrate it.
Wishing him a speedy recovery and all of you a large helping of peace.
 
He was able to come home Thursday.

They still don't really know what the issue was/is. His lungs were inflamed, but ultimately the doc ruled out pneumonia and two Covid tests came back negative. They kept him on an antibiotic just in case. They added a steroid to hopefully get the inflammation down. Looks like he will have to be on constant flow oxygen going forward instead of the pulsed on-demand oxygen he's been using. He already has a constant flow concentrator, so that is not a problem. He also has to stop trying to get up and walk around the house, even for short distances, without the concentrator. I have been griping at him about doing that. Now I think he is taking it serious.
 
Mom had one of those big noisy oxygen machines at home and a ridiculously long line for it, so we put it in a back room to keep the noise down. She hated it, and and was walking to the kitchen once and got her feet tangled into the line and she almost fell, and lightly bonked her head on the wall. She said "this BLEEPING thing is gonna kill me before God does!!" She was NOT known for outbursts, I was laughing hard, and she started laughing with me.
And that made the third and last time in her LIFE I ever heard her cuss. The other two times were directly at me when I was a teen.

Like Warren Zevon said...... enjoy every sandwich.
 
Glad to hear he is out. I can only imagine a hospital is not a place anyone really cares to be right now. Thank God for all the nurses and doctors Lord knows we need way more.
 
Good news, but dang the machines are hard to live with. Scott, enjoy every second with your dad while you can.
 
I’m just seeing this post and I’m hoping his condition will improve in a few days.
 
While Dad is doing better, he has weakened considerably. Just walking from the back porch into the house gets him winded. He tried to come in to work on Monday for a bit and that was tough. I don't really want him trying to walk across the uneven ground between his house and our office, especially at night. So he is no longer pulling 24 hr call every other week with me. That leaves me on 24 hr call all the time now. I still come into the office most days just so I can get out of the house and to keep the office cat company. It sure is quiet... I suspect he may have finally reached the point where he will REALLY retire from work finally after having talked about it for the last 15 years. He is REALLY bored though as they can't really go anywhere and he can only watch so many Hallmark movies with Mom before losing it :-P
 
Sounds like your dad needs to retire, kick back and spoil the grand kids. Glad he’s doing better. :thumb:
 
He is REALLY bored though as they can't really go anywhere and he can only watch so many Hallmark movies with Mom before losing it :-P
It sounds like he hasn't retired because he doesn't know what to do with himself if he's not at work? Can he do any of this work from home? I know you were looking at remote solutions a little while back.
 
It sounds like he hasn't retired because he doesn't know what to do with himself if he's not at work? Can he do any of this work from home? I know you were looking at remote solutions a little while back.

A LOT of what we do involves talking to people over the phone. In fact, having him here to handle phone calls so I can be freed up to actually do the work has been a HUGE deal over the years. Not having him here really slows things down if we start getting busy because I have to spend so much time on the phone. The problem right now is that talking on the phone is very difficult for him and he has to strain his voice to be heard, which in turn quickly wears him out.

He has long enjoyed woodworking as a hobby and has a TON of tools, but that is not something he can do any longer with his lung issues and just the general weakness and easy fatiguing. His other "hobby" if you can call it that has been visiting people that were shut ins, elderly people unable to get out. He has been doing several visits a week for many years until recently. With the Covid thing, that got canned, but even without Covid, I don't think he could do that any longer.

Like it not, he's just getting to that point where life is kind of winding down. The thought of losing him is hard to bear because we've worked together every day for the last 26 years and not having him here will be VERY difficult to get used to. I am one of those lucky guys that has the privilege of having a great Dad and being able to be great friends with him. I really feel sorry for the kids that miss out on that kind of relationship with their dad (or mom for that matter).
 
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I am one of those lucky guys that has the privilege of having a great Dad and being able to be great friends with him. I really feel sorry for the kids that miss out on that kind of relationship with their dad (or mom for that matter).
Yes indeed, you are quite lucky in that respect and I envy you.
 
I understand, been around the elders that refuse to toss in the towel and kick back and enjoy what life has left for them to enjoy. Me, retired at 62, I think, why did I quit what I loved doing that brought in a great regular paycheck? Sometimes I think “now, what am I gonna do today?” But then as I walk across the yard In the early morning calm, wrench in hand to tighten a bolt on the tractor to stop a rattle that has been bugging me, or on the path to the pool, cup of coffee in hand to check chemistry while all my friends are starting their day job, I appreciate the fact that no matter what I find to do to occupant my time, it doesn’t matter, I can do it tomorrow if I chose. My point? You only get one chance in life and don’t live life for others, live it for yourself...
 
I've had a tumultuous relationship with my dad most of my life. He was pretty strict. (beyond belief) I remember other parents saying if you don't straighten up we will send you to David's dad. No one wanted to spend the night at our house because if you got off track dad would whip you just like he did me. Back then parents did that. (Imagine that) As I matured (about 20 years behind schedule) I realized Dad was right and I was Wrong. It took a while, but I came around (sort-of) I wasn't going to be told what to do or how to save money. No Way! Life progressed and he ended up being right more often than not. Kinda sucked. I could make money but never saved. Life changed after divorce and 2 kids in college and yada yada yada. I moved on and met a Wonderful Lady and it changed my life. Dad and I are pretty connected (he still preaches about saving money) but things are good. He's still as stubborn as a mule but I Love the guy. If it weren't for him I wouldn't know how to work, whether its digging a ditch, mowing the yard, cleaning a septic tank or making a stock trade. There aren't many like him anymore.....Thanks for sharing about your Dad. They're Special, in every way.
 
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