Today...

So what is a typical day under hospice care like? I know it's different for different people, and will change as time goes on. But this what it's like today for Mike and me...

I spend most of the night up and down out of my nest, taking frequent cat naps as I watch TV (I have a new appreciation for the brilliant shows now available on streaming devices). By six this morning I was ready to stay up and sat down at my desk with a fresh cup of coffee. I catch up with notes I need to make, email and dms to answer and take my phone off the charger. Of course, I check Twitter for any breaking news. News always breaks on Twitter before it shows up on TV. 

Mike and Emmy get up around 10 a.m. I'm adamant that Mike gets a good night's sleep every night and he knows better than to argue with me about it. Nutrition and sleep are a must for care-givers. 

As soon as he got up it was obvious his cold was worse and now he has a deep cough. So off to the walk-in clinic for him, of course grumbling all the way and insisting he's okay. He came home with antibiotics and cough medicine, plus some chicken rice soup from Panera. 

While he was gone, I did my breathing treatment with the new nebulizer and new meds for my lungs. I still have a deep wheeze but my breathing is easier. Of course, this cancer crap had to appear during the worse part of the year for my allergies. Hard to know if my current symptoms are due to cancer or just allergies or the combination. 

My Tidewell nurse, Trisha,  and the chaplin called to see how I am and if I need anything. Trisha acted quickly yesterday to get me everything I needed and I'm all set for the weekend. 

One of the many things I love about Tidewell Hospice is that they are in the background. It's reassuring to know they are always there for whatever I need, but they don't consume or control my day.  I  know that will change as time goes on and I need them more but for now, it gives us a sense of normalcy. 

We'll have a light dinner later, watch TV with the dogs, and just kickback. And that's pretty much my day under hospice care. After making sure I have everything I need, hospice sits back and waits for me to reach out if anything comes up or changes. 

Oh, and one last word on the wisdom of impulsively cutting your hair off with craft scissors in the middle of the night. My hair was down to the middle of my back and I usually wore it in a messy ponytail or braid. It was getting difficult to wash with my spine pain, so I thought what the hell! Very few people would ever see it now. So I whacked it off to just below my ears. And it's horrid-LOL But again, who is going to see it? Right? Well, it seems life isn't quite finished with me yet. I'll write more about that later.