Busy Week, Less Stress, More Fluids

Yes, after being lectured more strongly by the chemo nurses and right after I published the last blog entry and after all of you read that gave out the collective thought, "Drink!" Janette has flipped her attitude and is now drinking much more. Whew!

I took Janette in for fluids this morning. We weren't sure if she really needed them. She wasn't showing any of the normal symptoms, but I didn't want her to get so dehydrated again. She was fine, so what we did instead was have a long conversation with the nurse. Janette is hydrated well enough for now, not great or perfectly, but well enough to keep taking fluids the way the rest of us do. If she keeps up this level of drinking and increases a bit more, she should stay hydrated enough. Good job! So, instead of another drinking lecture, Janette got a lecture about eating.

OK now everyone, all together, "Janette/Aunt Blackie, Eat!!"

Janette had backed off on her eating when she started drinking more. Her weight today was 119 lbs. Yes, she weighed so little last week, but that was dehydration. Fluids weight a lot! One liter of saline added 2.5 lbs each visit. But this 119 lbs is lack of food. It was a good lecture: Why she needs food and what type of food and how to eat small meals and how often and why food over vitamins and how her weight is much too low. Janette hates hearing this. You can see it in her face when we get to the part where she has to eat a little bit every two hours. Maybe it's the part where we say "have to" and "on this particular schedule." Whatever the block has been, she seems to be trying to get past it.

After this morning's lecture and no fluids, I suggested, as I often do, we get something special to eat. Today she said, yes. We picked up Aunt Eliska from around the corner and went out for breakfast. Janette ate 2"x5" piece of pancake with butter and syrup and about 10oz of orange juice. (I also got Aunt Eliska to eat an egg, protein, with her carbs, grits.) Ultimately, she wants to eat separately from drinking so she can do more of both, but the timing was bad for this morning. Before, she would take two bites and say, "I'm full," with the energy of (in my mind; she would probably disagree), "and I'm not going to eat anymore." Today she really, truly kept trying. And Aunt Eliska just called: Janette woke up from her short nap over there and is willing to try to eat some clam chowder. Gold star for attitude! We've been teasing her with this and she laughs with us.

Why is she over at Aunt Eliska's? First, Eliska made it safely back from Golden Meadow, though she's even more tired now. I'm a little worried about her health, too, but she is trying to rest more and not do too much walking or work right now. She thought the service for Aunt Sis was beautiful and she greatly enjoyed visiting with everyone. She was also very grateful for the opportunity to say good-bye to her sister. Second, we're having all the 43 year old windows replaced for hurricane season! Boy, those old panes popped out so easily! The only ones staying are the two sliding glass doors--they are good, tight fitting safety glass--and the kitchen window because it's an odd size. The new windows arrived to be installed just in time for Sybil's visit tomorrow afternoon. It's a noisy, hot process and they'll be finished sometime today.