CAREGIVING: I guess after Kathy’s most recent close call we all deserve an update. She is doing much, much better. The antibiotics did their job and her cheek went from grapefruit sized down to normal. Now we wait to see if the same infection comes back. I did learn a lot from the process. For one thing, just because you are getting hospice care doesn’t mean you can’t take care of other parts of your body. They just don’t pay for it. But, your other insurance may. I could bring her to the dentist, for example to see if the infection was a tooth. Or to another doctor to trace the infection. They have had patients that wanted a new pair of eyeglasses or to get an eye exam. If it makes them feel better they encourage you to do it. They just can’t pay the bill.
The episode also gave me a chance to continue the process of letting go and figuring out stuff for myself. Rachel, the Spiritual Counselor at Mercy Hospice came over to help me talk through some life and death stuff: funerals, body donations etc. I’ll put that in another post, but for now, so far so good.