I can't even go to her because I have a cold. Usually I stay with her while she's in the hospital. It gives me great peace of mind to do so. Now, I'm sick and can't risk Grandma or the other people in the hospital (since she'd go to the floor for respiratory issues).

This is her fourth time in 7 weeks. She's 95 1/2 years old. She's had interstitial lung disease for many years now and already lived longer than most do with it. I'm afraid this is it and stressed because I can't be with her. If it is, though, I'll go with a mask and sterilize my hands well. I'm almost over this cold, although I'll sound sick anyway because I keep crying.

Just reaching out. You folks here are some of my best friends.

My best wishes. Try to get some rest and recover so you can go to the hospital.

I've been resting and pushing fluids and am actually on the getting better side of this cold. Tomorrow I'll go to the hospital regardless.

The advice works!

Good luck with your grandma. Take care.

I am pushing fluids and hot tea is my favorite method. I love peppermint tea and I also drink an herbal tea by Celestial Seasonings known as Bengal Spice which is quite yummy. My other favorite is orange juice with diet Sprite in it. :)

Rebeckah Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I am pushing fluids and hot tea is my favorite
> method. I love peppermint tea and I also drink an
> herbal tea by Celestial Seasonings known as Bengal
> Spice which is quite yummy. My other favorite is
> orange juice with diet Sprite in it. :)


More good ideas for me to try when I need them. You're not just fighting a cold, the added stress is not helping.

Hey Rebeckah,

I am so sorry for you & your grandma. I was very close to my Nana and it was hard watching her deal with the detrimental effects of kidney failure & dialysis. you are so fortunate to have had your grandma in your life for so long. And your grandma is blessed to have a granddaughter like you who is with her through thick & thin! Grandparents really are a blessing, aren't they?


My mom is in ICU with COPD. She's been there since last Saturday and there's no longer hope of recovery - her lungs are shot. Mom's been on a ventilator and sedated and she struggles to breathe when the sedation is stopped during doctors' assessments.

Tomorrow DH, my cousin & I will be at the hosp. when they remove the ventilator. They will make her comfortable but I expect she will die pretty quickly. I'm an only child so dealing with Mom's care falls squarely on my shoulders. This is the worst week of my life - my mother was my best friend growing up. She's the best mom. . . .

Mom smoked for 45 yrs and quit 9 yrs ago. 3 months after she quit, her lung collapsed and she was diagnosed w/ COPD & emphysema.

To all the smokers on the board - I'm sure you get a lot of pressure to quit and I know nicotine is a HARD addiction to kick. Let me add my 2 cents on this - is smoking worth breaking the hearts of your children & grandchildren while they watch you slowly die from cancer or lung disease? Thanks to Camels, my 8-yr old is heartbroken that her beloved Nana is going to die.

Yes, Grandma has COPD and she never smoked but she was around a lot of second hand smoke. This is her 4th bout of pneumonia in 7 weeks, and this time she wasn't even out a week. I'm very afraid that tomorrow I'm going to be in the same situation as you are.

Yes, my Grandma has been a huge blessing in my life. My parents weren't well suited to be my parents but Grandma was my foundation and source of unconditional love. My world is going to be very much emptier when she dies.

Thanks for your kind words in your own time of sorrow. All my best to you too.

(Just so everyone knows, Interstitial Lung Disease is when the immune system attacks the lungs. It creates scarring and leads to COPD. They can treat the symptoms but not the problem. That's why she's got both COPD and the lung disease.)



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/15/2011 09:13PM by Rebeckah.

I am sorry janebond462 for what you are going through. My dad was a smoker too and gave it all up at 65 when a Dr. told him his blood pressure so high he should be dead and not sitting there talking to him. He gave it up cold turkey. He did survive it...he died of congestive heart failure nearly 20 yrs. later. I am so happy he gave it up. I had him in my life much longer than I would have I believe. Please know that many of us are with you in spirit as you go through this most difficult 24 hrs. Your mom is lucky to have had you. And you will hold memories close forever.

My thoughts are with you and your grandma. I so loved both my grandmas. It is hard to see them leave us. Perhaps she is going to get out, but this is where she needs to be for now. Hope you can see her in a couple days. All the best.

Rebeckah and JaneBone, I am so sorry. I was my mom's caretaker when she was dying of cancer at 70. You were lucky to have these great women for so long.

Take care of yourselves; these stressful situations will be hard on your health, too.

Tons of hugs.

Sending lots of love and hugs your way...

stormy

My best wishes to you and gran.

I'm so sorry...........this will be a rough week for both of you.

Sending hugs and wishes your way.

K

Best wishes to you all.

I have just been through a bad bout of pneumonia myself, fifteen days worth of antibiotics and other Rx's which have wrecked havoc on my GI tract. Chest xray later today.

Best wishes for your Grandma's recovery. Four times in seven weeks sounds like the beginning of the end and you should be preparing yourself for this. Pneumonia feels like a foot on the chest, so Grandma will feel relief from pain and suffering.

Hopefully you will be able to be with her, but she may not recognize you. If she can swallow, a milkshake seems to be greatly appreciated. Also, hearing is the last to go, so some of her favorite tunes from the 1940's can bring a smile.

The gift Grandma leaves you is a sharpened appreciation of the loved ones you have left, and the brevity of life in general. Possibly the most important gift there is.

Light and love to you, Rebekah, at this difficult time.

Anagrammy

PS: Here is my cold-fighting tip: At first sign of symptoms, put Vicks Vaporub on chest/throat and cover with turtleneck (may use dickie or cut from a cotton turtleneck t-shirt). Take one aspirin and one vitamin "C" tablet every 2 hours (refresh vaporub). Drink a glass of water every hour. Bundle up and stay down for one day (or whenever not working) until symptoms are gone.

Yes, Anagrammy, I do believe this is the beginning (or even further along than that) of the end. The fact that she didn't even have a full week this time before it returned has me steeling myself for bad news.

Thank you for your cold fighting advice. Today I'm going to soak in a hot, hot bath while the baby naps -- for some reason a hot bath seems to work my illnesses through faster. I just want to be healthy enough to visit grandma without risking other people. I wish I could spend the nights with her again this time...

Whatever, but don't let her feel alone. My beloved mother died last year from pneumonia, only 79, and I was with her the last week as well as at the last breath. Much of the time we were silent, letting her sleep, but we did talk to her intermittently. I am certain she heard me, even though her brain was impaired from insufficient oxygen. It is a comfort to me to know that I was a comfort to her.

She may be aware of you and comforted, even if it doesn't look like it. The only time my mom opened her eyes the whole last week was the morning I sang softly to her, some Cole Porter and James Taylor songs. I asked her if she wanted me to keep singing, to close her eyes then open them again, and she was able to do that. That was the only obvious response we had from her that whole week, but it was because of the music. She had not reacted to classical music from the radio a few days earlier, seemed agitated by it, but a familiar voice softly singing gentle music could be a comfort.

Peace, courage and virtual hugs to you.