Oh my god. So much since the last post. On the day of the last post the husband fell twice- once at 6 in the evening right out the back door and again around 9 just walking down the hall to use the bathroom. He fell again in the wee hours of the morning- actually falling off the toilet right in the middle of doing his business. I don’t even know how such a thing would happen. Then the next day he fell again, we helped him up, he staggered to the bathroom, fell again in the bathroom, and then while showering off he said he thought he needed to go to the hospital.
My heart sank. I couldn’t say NO, but it’s the middle of a pandemic. Doom settled over me like a cloud. So I had to call Evan to help get his father to the car (I knew he’d need two kids to get him out of the house) and I drove the husband to the ER.
I was prepared to at least register him (and explain his physical and mental
condition to someone who would note it on his chart) but as we pulled up there were signs that said DROP OFF ONLY. Two young guys (typically the valets) got a wheelchair and helped him in. I just drove away choking back the tears. I was not prepared for that. It felt like I was abandoning him. Tough feeling to go to from my usual level of over the top feeling of responsibility.
Long story short this is the husband’s fourth night in the hospital. They didn’t really investigate his heart, which was disappointing to say the least. I mean, when someone has minimal heart function you’d want to know if it slipped a little. But since nothing indicated a big heart attack they didn’t do an echocardiogram. They can’t find a specific reason for his inability to walk other than worsening of what he already has.
Tomorrow PT will show up and see if he can walk and if he looks safe to leave they’ll send him packing. I don’t think he’ll be able to walk. I mean, now he’s been sitting in bed for 4 days. It’s not gonna happen. But he will have to come back to the house. Even if I could put him in a nursing home (he wouldn’t stand for it- no pun intended) I can’t do it right now when nursing homes are all infected.
And I’m also worried that he’s been infected in the hospital. There isn’t a chance he’d be responsible coming back here. He wouldn’t quarantine himself. I have to bring a potential time bomb into my home? I’m really upset. I had so many plans.
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