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Congrats helpless, glad to hear your dad is doing better.

 

There are some sites on the internet that have recipes..

Vitamix. com and Magic Bullet (2 types of juicer/blender) have recipes for blended food. I also typed in free juicing recipes and found quite a few sites.

 

 

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Congrats to you BOTH. I practiced also. I live in a very small/rural area so started out with the driveway, then about a mile, etc. until I felt comfortable and knew I would react properly. The first few times out I did miss my exit. I was concentrating so hard on driving that I passed the exit. Concentration, focus all gets better, it just takes repetition and getting confidence back.

 

Best Wishes and Many More Happy Days

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Guest veggie.vampire

I too eat many pureed foods with a few soft foods. Congrats to Dad, that's a great step forward. As always, variety is the spice of life; for months I had mashed potato twice every day, of course now I can't stand it! Virtually anything can be pureed.

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:hahaha: Mashed potatoes! Apparently Dad turns his nose up at pureed eggs and sausage :tongue:, but loves his ice cream!

thanks for the recipe site. I'll pass it on.

Love those little accomplishments. Makes our lives seem very mundane with its petty problems ... doesn't it?

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After 2 weeks of on again, off again and 1 trip to a cardiologist and 1 stress test, we finally got Hubby booked for rotator cuff surgery tomorrow (#5 rotator cuff) They will probably keep him overnight for observation b/c of the stroke he had last Sept. This hasn't been a pleasant experience so far this time. It has actually been a comedy of errors and his surgery was changed/cancelled 4 times. Totally unacceptable for a world renown hospital and sure hope we don't have to have any more surgery in the future.

Please keep us in your prayers so he doesn't get staph again or c-diff while he is there. We don't need any more problems.

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Hi,

 

Today marks dad's 7th month since his stroke. He has not been on REAL food since

January 4,th. He also has not spoken since January 4th. He has been on a breathing

aparatus since then and has been on both oxygen and a trache tube since then.

 

My last conversation with dad was on January 3rd, the day after his carotid artery

surgery. I'll never forget his voice that day. It's been 7 long months. His appts for

the trache removal have been postponed on several different occassion for different

reasons.

 

My question to you everyone here is:

 

Do you think dad can come home and live with us? Can we care for him at home?

Dad is still on a catheder, and liquid diet, but I wanted to know if dad could at least

come live with us? I have read that there are some places which I am understanding WILL

let you bring him home and will offer 24hr nursing support and care for him.

 

Can someone tell me anything about this? It sure would be great to know that I am NOT

misunderstanding this information.

 

Please let me know. Mom says that dad cannot come home at least until he is back on

REAL food and has the PEG tube removed. Does anyone out there know anything different?

 

I miss dad.. a LOT! This house is just TOO empty and quiet without his presense. PLEASE tell me he

at least come home. PLEASE!!! :(:(:(

 

Though I am glad to see him every day..

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Reading this is very sad, but first, check with his doctor on the procedure for bringing him ho,e. I am pretty sure if he requires 24/7 care where he is, you or someone else will have to know how to care for and do his trach, cathrter[sp] & all his needs -

Do you have a nurse in the family, tat could help - this really would make a big difference, but you must check all this out with dad's health care professionals BEFORE he can come home

June

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"Mom says that dad cannot come home at least until he is back on

REAL food and has the PEG tube removed. Does anyone out there know anything different?"

 

I hear what you are saying.......you miss your dad and would love to have him home with you. One thing you said is that "his trache removal has been postponed on several occasions for different reasons". The only reason I can think of is that his condition hasn't progressed to a point where it will be possible for him to breath unassisted.

 

Your Mom will be the person primarily responsible for your Dad's care. I understand that you really miss him and want him with you at home, but as you have said he currently requires 24 hour a day nursing care. An "offer of 24 hour nursing care" doesn't come without alot of expense. I don't know what kind of insurance your folks have, but that plays a huge factor on whether or not you family can care for your Dad at home, too.

 

As I said, I understand your desire to bring Dad home. I know how quiet it is in the house without him because when my husband is in the hospital it's the same way. I've read other posts here describing the learning process involved in bringing one home who has the requirements your Dad has. And even though one person has the experience and training, it's unrealistic to expect that one person to have 24/7 responsibility for his care. While he is in the hospital or nursing facility he is in he has one or two people caring for him every eight hours. Those people can go home and get some sleep and do the other things "normal" work schedules allow. They work 40 hours a week. The caregiver's week isn't like that.

 

This is a really, really hard time for you and I'm sorry you have to go through this experience. I'm sure you've been reading other posts and you've read some blogs. Stroke changes life forever. Even the survivors with the best outcomes acknowledge that fact. My husband needs 24/7 care, however he can eat, talk, breath on his own, is able to toilet himself and with assistance can bathe, etc. I know how exhausted I get, and I just can't imagine being able to care for him if he had the problems your Dad does - as much as I love him it just wouldn't be physically or financially possible.

 

I know you want someone here to tell you "yes" he can come home. I don't think that is going to happen though because we really don't know all the situation and we can't make those kinds of decisions for your Mom. We can tell you we are here for you to bounce your thoughts off. We can tell you we have been where you are in wanting things to be back to "normal"......We can tell you we miss the way things were.

 

But most of all, we can encourage you to visit your Dad where he is. Love your Mom and remember she has lots and lots on her plate now.

 

I hope you know we all care for you and do understand your desires.

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Ann -

 

Wow, thanks for your detailed explanation! For being so far away, you really came close in thought!!! You know exactly what I am feeling and thinking, and you have given me a LOT to see and understand. I will ALWAYS remember your words, thank you so very much!!

 

BIG HUGZ and LUV!

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:friends: well today was a year to the day that Trev & I gort married (tomorrow is the actual date).

 

As you know he is still in the care home so I went to see him complete with cool bag of goodies...tuna pasta salad (homemade), fresh wholemeal bread, also home made. A cartoon of his fav ice cream, crackers & brie plus a bottle of red wine :cheer:

 

We had a lovely time just sat in his room enjoying each others company...& getting slightly tipsy...both of us :cheer: :cheer: :cheer:

 

Trev just enjoyed having some home cooked food for once, everyone was so kind & wished us well etc....just hope it's not long till he's home for good :(:( missing him so much.

 

 

 

chris xx

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As everybody is saying, you'll have to get with his doctors for approval. Then find out if caring for him properly at home is possible 24/7. You don't want to subject him to improper care and something happens.

Check with your insurance also, see if they will cover any expenses for 24 hour care.

 

I understand your concern and desire but it has to be feasible for family involvement of care.

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Guest veggie.vampire

Chris congratulations. Would day trips to the local town be allowed? We got permission from the doctors and trust me the coffee in a cafe can taste so good, and a film be hysterical! Helped a great deal, I went stir crazy in hospital with those same 4 walls all the time.

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Chris,

 

Let me add my congratulations. Bill and I were married just over 2 years when he had his first "big" stroke. Believe me, the stroke hasn't changed the love we have for each other - thank God that's a constant in our lives when everything else changes!

 

Diane has a great idea, for both Chris and you. If you could go out on some day trips - even for an hour or so it would help not only him, but would help you prepare for his returning home. The reality of caring for him at home is that YOU are it. Even though you think you have all the confidence in the world, when reality hits you may be a little frightened.

 

So far you've been deep in the "politics" of making it possible for him to return home. Since the roadblocks are beginning to be removed you will some day soon (I hope!) get the call or hear the word when you visit that Trev can come home. If you've had some experience maneuvering everything around beforehand you'll be much more relaxed.

 

Have a great Sunday - and it sounds like you had a super anniversary.

 

:big_grin: :big_grin:

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Chris, :happydance: :congrats: :music_band: :music_dj: on your 1 year anniversary. That was nice you were just able to enjoy each others company. When my daughter Rachel was in rehab, we would take her to the local park. She loved it. It was so nice just to be in another atmospehere, evcen for a little while. Good Luck and hopefully you will be home soon. :Good-Luck:

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Wow our dad's fell ill around the same time and our user names are pretty close. My dad had his stroke on 1/20/06. My dad's stroke was pretty severe but has managed to recovery quite well (with the lord's blessing and lots of prayer).

 

My dad came home with his peg-tube, he was no longer dependant on the tube. It was our responsibility to flush the tube through out the day. I believe your dad will make a grand recovery, he's just taking a lil more time to heal. I'll keep you in my prayers, PM if you feel like chatting.

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HI Daddz Gurl. I think Annie gave you a good reply. I know how much you miss your dad. Visiting right now may be the best. 24/7 care is just that.... Unless you have 2 or 3 people trained to care for him. It is a lot for one person. Your dad is getting proper care and the nurses and doctors know what to watch for. Caring for someone at home can be very scary, and stressful. Unless you have the finances or Insurance to pay for round the clock nursing. If an emergency arrises he is in the hospital with all the equipment necessary to take care of him.

I know it can be hard, only seeing him for a short time. But you and your mom can come home and eat and get some sleep and know your dad is getting care and having nurses check him.

 

We are here to talk to, lots of shoulders to lean on and ((((((HUGS)))))))

Stroke affects the whole family. Recovery can be slow. So don't give up hope. and know we are here for you

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You and your mom are going thru a hard time, but 24/7 care is quite stressful, even for health professionals -

You have been given good advice, so check with your doc, insurance company to see if you can have 24/7 help @ home ready for him - right now, visiting is the best

GOD BLESS & GOOD LUCK

June :cheer:

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Hi Everyone :chat:

 

As most of you know by now, I try to stay very positive and upbeat. Well today was not a good day for me. :( Rachel had an echocardiogram done to see how her heart is doing. Her heart is only pumping at a 25-30% range. Less then half of what it should be. Around 65% is normal. For a 22 year old, it's very abnormal. This means the heart is enlarged and isn't pumping blood like it should, which in turn can cause bloodclots. Well it caused 3 in fact, and this is what caused Rachel's stroke in February.

 

The doctor is now talking a possible internal defibulator. A small box that can shock the heart in case of abnormal rhythm or possible heart attack. The procedure is fairly simple-outpatient surgery. But for my daughter, who has CHF, suffered a massive stroke, and has known bloodclots, nothing is that simple. We will be talking more with the cardiologists and her primary care physician about this. Nothing set in stone yet.

 

How do you make choices like that? The doctors will tell us all the complications: heart attack, stroke, bloodclots, all the things she already has. I'm scared, frustrated, sad, and angry. :Tantrum: :( I'm angry we can't fix this. Moms and dads are supposed to fix things. I've cried all day-I don't let Rachel see me, which is hard.

 

We will be praying a lot! I know God has a plan. I know I'm not supposed to question that, but how do you not, when someone you love so much is hurting??

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I can't imagine making choices like that. I can only think that you have to listen to the Doctors, 2nd opinions and all, Family and of course Rachel and then make the best decision together. Just remember your not alone. I'll put you and Rachel in my prayers and thoughts.

 

Bob

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Lisas, my heart goes out to you. In 1971 my 6 yr old son was diaqgnosed with cancer, back then the drugs were mainly experimental. We went thru 18 months of experimental chemo theraapy, radiation, etc. There is no worse feeling I know of than watching your child ... and you can't make it better. You make the best choice you can at the time with the information you have. Listen to the Dr.'s follow your heart.

 

You are not alone.. ((((((((((((((((HUGS)))))))))))))

Bonnie

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Thanks Bonnie, :friends:

You're right, it's very hard. I couldn't tell by your reply if your son made it ok. I pray he did. That was awful young to have cancer. I'm so sorry. We all have a story that's for sure. Take Care :friends:

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Lisas my thoughts are with you also, it's true what you say we all want to protect our children & take away their hurt & make them well again.

 

But listen to what your doctors are saying, consider wether the risk of the procedure outweighs the risk of not having the pacemaker. A very difficult descision...but my prayers are with you.

 

chris xx

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Sorry :( , for what you are all going through, but if I were in your shoes, and being a 20 year stroke survivor, I would not only get a second opinion, but take the advice o the cardiologist and proceed with surgery - This could save her life and/or prevent further damage

You are in my prayers

June

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Lisas,

 

I am so sorry that you have to face these choices. My youngest who has epilepsy is seven and had his first seizure at the age of 18 monthes, he has been on seizure medicine since and has been diagnosed with Aspergers syndrome, which is a form of Autism. My heart and prayers go out to you. I know as a parent it is the worst thing to watch your child go through all of this, to watch and be able to do nothing to fix it. You have to follow what your heart says. In my opion and I am no expert but I feel you need to talk it over with your daughter, you have to do what ever you have to to make her life better. I know everyone on this site has listened to me whine about being a caregiver, and it is the most difficult job I have ever taken on and sometimes I really wanted to just give up, but I know in my heart that god does not give us more than we can handle. Some of us seem to get more than others but I have learned over the years that just means we are the strongest. So please stay strong and know we are all here for you! If I can quote someone on this site that has provided me with a lot of wisdom, "caregiving is not for sissies" maybe that is why we were chosen to take on this job. Maybe without us the ones that we love would never be able to call themselves a survivor. You are in mine as well as many on this sites prayers.

 

Andi

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Ok I must apologize even if everyone else said that I don't have to. I have had so many downs I can not count them all. I just wanted to tell everyone I was scared that I had cancer, they did all the tests and I am happy to say that I am cancer free, this was such a scare and thank you to all that listen to me whine. It is such a relief to know that I am not sick and now I can concentrate completely on helping Steed recover and come back to life. I don't know if I could have made it through this long, coming up on Steed's 5 month anniversary with out all of you. So thank you, the best moment in the last few monthes was when I found this site.

 

Andi

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