Blood Pressure Too High

1-22-2020

Mom's blood pressure was way too high this morning. Not sure if something happened to her heart last night or maybe something is going to happen to her heart soon. It was a radical change from the weeks and days before. 219/114 was today's reading compared to her average around 135/75. She isn't showing signs of a stroke or acting any different than her new normal self.  She says she doesn't have any chest pain or discomfort anywhere. However, she is very restless again today and then from sound sleep, blurted out loudly, "Someone help me! What am I supposed to do?" and then fell back asleep. It startled me and made me jump when she hollered.

Mom's favorite way to sleep anymore.

Enjoying a fruit plate as part of her breakfast.
The only thing she has forward to, is what she
is eating and she doesn't eat much anymore.

Mom has every single one of these signs now except for nausea and vomiting. And also no chest pain yet, thank goodness. But all the rest are daily occurrences for her. Not looking forward to the vomiting part of this process, but I am sure it is not too far in the future.

She kept crawling out of bed last night. She slept about 20 minutes and then got up six times before she finally stayed in bed for a few hours. Each time I asked why she got up and she stared blankly and said "I don't know. What am I supposed to be doing?" Each time, I turned her around to tuck her back in, only to have her get back up 2-10 minutes later. I need to ask Hospice to give me something to help her settle at night. She sleeps so much during the daytime hours, that she no longer knows if it's morning or night.

I have been trying so diligently to work in my office today but Mom's restlessness is keeping me from getting anything important or urgent done. There is no way I can make important phone calls right now or run team stat reports - and make sense of them.  I've worked all morning just trying to send the Durable Power of Attorney papers to places that need them and even so, I have had to resort to mailing them (because I can't go to town to use a fax machine) so it is going to take longer than need be to be able to settle her financial affairs. Life is swirling by me, at warp speeds no less, and I am moving slowly here in a thick, clear molasses, slowly going under, so it seems.

We are not expecting any visitors today. No great grandchildren to wear her out so she sleeps at night.   She is still receiving some sweet cards from so many of you. Thank you. She reads them over and over. She loves getting mail. (It gives her something to do that she can still do for herself!)

*** I still need a couple of things from town if anyone local is reading this blog. Mom is almost out of her cough syrup and she will panic if I don't have any to give her when she is choking on that nasty thick mucus.