Well, last night disn’t go quite according to,plan. I had asked to be settled between 10 and 10:30, but it was mayhem. Lots of demanding patients, not just in my bay but throughout the whole ward. Some were wandering about, one was singing quite loudly, E refused to go to bed so spent the night in her recliner chair, another patient somewhere collapsed and everyone went rushing.
So I snoozed on my back until they came very apologetic just after midnight.
Not a bad night. Woken up at around 6 and I was cold, so I grabbed my shawl and put it over me.
Morning sugars 5.2 bp 106/22
Checked the bank statement and emails and dozed a bit until breakfast. Hungry again, so more Ready Brek and toast. It comes in 2 parts – the Ready Brek and drink first, then when everyone’s been done, the toast gets done.
I am beginning to look like the Michelin man as the steroids have bloated me up (I don’t think that is the correct term, but you know what I mean) and I have no waist at all. Julio has started to call me Bibendum.
After breakfast I had a lovely bed bath and Caroline the auxiliary offered to wash my hair. Another technique – up to top of bed, pillows under neck, bowl of warm water on bed under head. Water, shampoo, fresh bowl of water to rinse. Feels really good. Doing girl talk with nurse and aux – babies, grandchildren, midwives and having babies, showing each other pics of children – lovely time. Nurse’s son is 2 and a gorgeous Philippino (I think, I must check).
Tried ringing Mum and Dad before they left, but it went to answerphone.
Into chair for a while doing some more office stuff when the physios got round to me. They had been in the bay for some time, starting with M and getting her standing and then into chair. Then E who refused to have anything to do with them. Then L, who did really well getting out of chair and walking around with the walking frame.
My turn. They were physios I hadn’t seen before (nothing new there) and they asked what exercises I wanted to do. I explained I was supposed to be getting intensive physio 3 times a day, but I wasn’t able to do most of it as it involved other people helping.
So they abandoned the idea of doing the standing exercises as if I haven’t got the core strength in my middle back, I won’t be able to stand anyway, so they got me on to the bed and did some of my bed exercises with me. They didn’t know what exercises I was supposed to be doing and had to look at my sheet, so I assume that they just come round and see everyone on the ward and spend a bit of time with them getting them sitting up, seeing if they can stand and use walking frames – genetic geriatric stuff, it seems to me.
My plan for chair/bed definitely didn’t work today. I thought that as I had been in the chair since around 11, having lunch, then asking to be put into bed. So I asked about 2. I was told that they’d just get someone else (I’m down as a 2 person turnaid, but that needs to be changed to 1 person). No one came. It is still very busy on the ward.
Pre lunch sugars 15.8. Lunch was minestrone soup, the lovely roast veg tart I had some time ago, when I was in Swindon last, with mini hash browns and baby carrots, with a great firm pear for dessert. It was very nice.
Julio arrived and we did some more office stuff, the he told me of his plan to get me out of here. It involves threatening to discharge me to somewhere else. I’m a nervous about this. He went to talk to the sister, and she said they were waiting for Chippenham to tell them they had a bed. Juli then asked to see the matron, and waited, but s/he didn't come, so he left to go back to the office and do some phoning and stuff.
I stayed stuck in the chair, so at 3:30 I asked again to be put into bed (I reckoned that I could get an hour and a half in bed, have a snooze, do some exercises and then get out again for supper). L and I had a long chat – she and her husband celebrated their 66th wedding anniversary earlier this year, they live in Fairford. And they are waiting to try to get a care home in Fairford where they can have a double room as he also needs care.
What actually happened was that I was still in the chair for supper.
Pre supper sugars were horrendous again at 31.2 . I had had one sneaky ginger nut biscuit (apparently, according to the Internet, ginger nuts are the best for you, apart from Rich tea if you are going to have a biscuit). Supper was the usual cheese and pickle sandwich and jelly, with chicken and mushroom soup. I eventually got into bed for a nappy change and the snooze when Juli reappeared. He has firmed up the plan a bit more. He brought me some Costa tea.
Then Sian arrived, with a whole load of post to go through, which we did, and a fantastic cover for my new phone. I had been a bit worried what it would be like – I had a fold around cover like a book for my old phone, and I liked it. Juli’s cover is just a cover, with the screen always visible. It’s a lovely blue book cover one, with spaces for cards, and it feels lovely! Thank you Sian.
So, after Sian left it got interesting again. Both M and E confused and started talking, and at one point they started answering each other, so I stayed out of it. M , who was lucid and pleasant and doing really well during the day got more and more confused and is convinced that people are drugging her (she’d had to have an injection earlier) and was convinced that people were keeping her prisoner. E keeps saying that it’s a lovely day.
So, that’s where we are now. It’s 9pm, I’m going to see what’s on tv for an hour and I’ll turn my big light out, which might calm things down a bit (although M still has hers on). Geriatric wards mean get people out of bed and into chairs as soon as possible, leave them there until around 7.30/ 8 and put them back into bed. The bay lights are on, but they are not very bright. E humming Eastenders tune.
Goodnight!
No comments:
Post a Comment