Paul had a real good night last night. He woke up a couple of times coughing, but before I could get the medicine for him, he fell back asleep. He slept til about 7:00 this morning.
We had a busy day yesterday. Philip & Karen were both here, and our good friend Bob stopped by. We also had quite a few church people stop by, both in the afternoon and in the evening. Paul was quite alert while people were here, and he didn't have any other periods of agitation like he had earlier in the morning.
I think Philip and Karen are both doing better. They are living together in the apartment now, and I think they are really a good support for each other. They come over a lot to see Paul. When they're here for a meal, I've noticed that Philip eats well, which I think is a good sign. When he's depressed, he just can't eat, and he had gotten very thin.
Karen has been granted home bound status for school, which means that she doesn't have to go to class. Her teachers gave her a bunch of assignments to do on her own, and she has been doing very well about getting them done. If she continues getting her work done, she should graduate in May.
I have made arrangements with an agency to have a CNA here every day Monday-Friday from 12 noon to 8:00 p.m. Our housekeeper is coming every day Monday-Friday from 8:00 a.m. to noon now. I have been considering that a medical expense because she helps a lot with Paul. I'm still planning to have friends and family sleeping here at night for awhile yet, and I have several people that I can call on for weekend duty if we don't have any family coming up.
Yesterday Mom and a friend went out and bought some balloons for Paul. He just loves them. They are helium filled - one is a bright butterfly, one is a smiley face, one is a nice Easter balloon, and several are just bright colors. We have them tied onto the sides of his bed, and he often pulls the strings and watches them bounce around.
I've been trying to think of other things that we can do to give Paul mental stimulation and enjoyment. We used to have a ball - I think it was from Tupperware - that had holes in it for various shapes. There were plastic pieces for those shapes that you fit into the holes in the ball. I think someone in the family may have given it to us. I don't know if I kept it or if I gave it back to whoever gave it to us. I thought I would crawl up in the attic this weekend and see if I put it up there. If any of you happen to have it, or something like that, could you send it to us?
Continue to: Apr. 4, 1999
Return to: Diary of a Brain Tumor Patient's Wife
Created and maintained by Renette Davis. Send comments to Renette by clicking here.
Created: June 19, 1999
Last updated: July 21, 2010