Today is pretty crappy
 

I got yelled at because one of my coworkers told my boss I was upstairs talking. My other coworker is mad at me because I ordered postit note dispensers for myself & another coworker. And my grandpa fell last night, in the middle of the night & broke is arm. The work stuff doesn't really matter it's just infurating. And I'm sure a lot of it is tension due to the current economic situation, but why make things worse by getting pissed off about everything.

As for my grandpa, I just feel so aweful for him. It's the arm that doesn't work anyway due to a stroke he had a couple years, but still, He must be in so much pain. It's broke up by the shoulder & it broke clear threw, they call it a spiral break. Most people they would pin it, but with his age & the fact he can't use it anyway they'll probably just let it heal naturally. It just breaks my heart when things happen to him. But at least he called someone, usually he hates to call & wake people up. So please say a prayer for him.

I think that is part of the reason I like my job so much....I don't have to work much with other adults. Things can get so petty in the workplace.

How awful for your grandfather...thank goodness he is alright.

Sending prayers for your Grandpa and hoping your day gets better.

That kind of break is VERY painful - especially when they don't pin it - so make sure he gets the pain meds he needs. Often older people are reluctant to take pain meds because they are afraid of getting dependent on them. In a case like this, with a painful event, he really needs to take the pain meds. Be sure to tell him it is OK. They will put the arm in a sling or something to keep it immobile (usually not a cast, but maybe). Please tell him to keep it like they tell him to because it will not heal and will continue to hurt if it is not kept properly immobile.

So sorry about your Grandfather. I know that you're pretty close to him. Tell him to listen to his doctor and to Gayle!!! Being older it will take a while to mend.

I hope that your drama at work gets better. I can't imagine getting upset over a Post-it note dispenser.

I hope you have a better day at work tomorrow!
Poor Grandpa! I'm so sorry he is hurt..I hope he has a speedy recovery!

Hope you're having a better day at work today. It hard when things don't go well at work especially when most workers spend more waking hours at work than at home.

Thanks everyone for the support. Today isnt' much better, I think we're all just burnt out from all the threats of terminations & the pressures to do more work with less people. I need to find something new; this is a toxic environment.

My mom put my grandpa is the hospital yesterday afternoon. She didn't feel comfortable giving him pain meds at home & wanted him to be somewhere where he is monitored. The bone specialist is supposed to come in this morning & evaluate what the next action will be. Thanks for all the tips Gayle. Keeping it immobile shouldn't be hard since it doesn't work anyway, but I know he's in a great deal of pain. Just breaks my heart. Keep the prayers coming. You ladies are the best.

I'm so sorry to hear things are not much better. At least your grandpa is in the hospital where he can be monitored better. I hope he is able to get some pain relief - this is a painful break. My friend did this to her arm last August and she just now is getting over it. They didn't do surgery at first, but ended up having to surgically repair it in Dec. She went from Aug-Dec in LOTS of pain. Hopefully, they can keep your grandpa comfortable.

Glad your day is better.
Prayers for you Grandpa.

I just went to see him. I got to see the break on x-ray & it's nasty. It's one break, but it broke into 4 sharp pieces. He's really lucky it didn't go through the skin. The specialist decided with his age & the fact the arm doesn't work anyway because of the stroke that they will apply a compression brace. I guess it fits over the shoulder & down the arm & holds the bones tight so they can heal. They are going to try this for 4-5 weeks & then if it's not healing they'll do surgery then. Then surgery would be pretty envasive because they would have to put a steel rod down through his shoulder & then pin the pieces to it, so they don't want to do that if they can help. He only really has to stay tonight yet, but my mom and the specialist are willing to have him stay a few more days for pain management. He has trouble taking pain pills orally because of stomach problems. The specialist said the pain should lessen after the first 4-5 days.

Sounds like a good plan! My friend ended up having to have the surgery - but it really helped her pain (and mobility - which of course, isn't an issue for your grandpa).

I hope he does not need surgery!!! Hope things continue to improve! Keep us posted.

A speedy recovery to your grandpa, I hope he doesn't need the surgery and the medication will kick in.

Sorry about your days at work, things are hard all over, so everyone is just stressed out.. I hope its a better day tomorrow.

Sounds like this is a great plan to help him recover. I will pray that he doesn't have to have future surgery and that his pain stops quickly. Poor guy...I feel so bad for him.

More bad news. My grandpa started vomiting blood last night. They were thinking bowel blockage since he has trouble with that & hasn't gone since sunday I guess, but from what he's throwing up I guess the doctors and nurses think higher like an ulcer or g-i bleed. They're taking x-rays this morning & he's going to see the stomach doctor today. He had a portion of his bowel removed about 1.5 years ago due to scar tissue and this was the doctor that did it. I guess it's a good thing he was already in the hospital. Hopefully they can figure out what's going on. He's just been going down hill the past year, but I guess that's what happens when you're 91 things just stop working.

Your poor Grandpa. He is really dealing with a lot right now. I'll keep him in my prayers.

My prayers too. Bless his heart, 91,

Awww - poor Grandpa. I feel so bad for him, like Janet said. Let's hope for a not so serious reason for the bleeding.

The stress of the injury and the pain is probably what caused it. He's been through a lot!

Thank goodness he was in the hospital so they could check him out right away. It's sad to me that these things happen as we age. You'd think after a good hard life that we could just go in our sleep without any complications.

I agree Janet. It would be nice if he'd just drift away instead of all this pain. I don't think it's good what's going on right now. His blood tests show he's losing blood somewhere, but they've done scopes, scans, & everything else & can't find it. Sat. & Sun. they gave me him units of blood each day, but his numbers still aren't where they should be. Also giving him blood hurts his kidneys I guess so they give him fluid to make them work & then he gets fluid places he shouldn't. He just looked so tired & ready to give up yesterday. We lost grandma 3 years ago friday & I think he's really ready to go home & be with her.

He's been mysteriously losing blood since last july. He had a bout of diverticulitis (sp) & ever since then his blood numbers show low iron & such at times. Like he's losing blood, but theres no explanation for it. If it's his time it's his time. I've gotten to spend a lot of quality time with him over the past 3 years & I just want him to feel better even if that means he's no longer in that body.

I'm sorry to hear this. It is very hard when people get very old and are sick and in pain. The last thing we want is to see them suffer. Hopefully, he will feel better soon.

My mother is 86 years old today. She has been having the same problems now for 2 years. Losing blood and not knowing where. They have had to add blood every two to three months and now she is in kidney failure. She had a fistula put in her arm so when the time comes (it has, but she refuses so far) she'll need to go on dialysis. She just doesn't want to do that. Says she feels fine, but by the time she feels bad...it will be too late. She won't listen.

They did all the tests on her too, but never found where she was losing blood. Hope they can help your grandfather.

Wow, this is so strange that she is having almost the exact same problems as my grandpa & no one knows why. Gayle, can blood just vaporize when you get older, or is it possible they aren't making new like they should?

My grandpas kidney number was at 86 yesterday, I guess it's supposed to be 21. It was up over 100 on thursday which I guess is critical. If he does pull out of whatever this is & his numbers stay that high he'll need to get dialysis 2-3 a week & I'm sure he's not going to be excited about that.

My Dad was losing blood somewhere too. He had all kinds of tests but they never figured out where. He had to have blood every once in a while too. I never understood why they couldn't determine where he was losing it from.

I hope that your Grandfather starts getting better soon. It's so hard to see them have problems.

Sunday night my grandpa told me my mom he thought he was at the end. But he didn't pass & looked much better yesterday. They wanted to send him home yesterday because he no longer needs blood, I guess his blood numbers are back up. They convinced them that he needed physical therapy for his legs so he gets to stay a few more days. Then we'll need to get him a hospital bed & hire someone to stay withhim until he's out of the woods. So we'll see what happens in the next couple days.

After 91 years, I wish him an easy time. You are a good granddaughter, and he needs loving people with him now.

My uncle was close to 90 when he passed. He had begun to "fail" as my aunt called it, about a year before. She had bought a condo in Florida that year, and I think he really didn't want to go, so he just let go and stopped fighting.

They were in his favorite place in their country cabin that day. His grandchildren and his son were with him that day. He loved them more than anything in the world. In the middle of the night, he passed. We buried him in such a beautiful spot. He's got space around him and is under the most beautiful tree over his grave. I feel happy for him when I think of him being with his family and then being buried in a place he would have loved.

Your grandpa may live for another several years, but I do hope he has such a lovely end.

That was beautiful Judy. That's all I wish as well. I know he wants to go to his eternal home & be with my grandma. I do hope he has a peaceful & painfree transition.

Unexplained blood loss is very difficult. Yes, it can be that blood cells are being destroyed or are not developing properly - but this usually is ultimately explained by a blood cancer and this is clearly not the case in Janet's mother and probably not in your grandpa either. There can be "pooling" of blood in the spleen, and I can't remember what causes that - which can decrease the amount of circulating blood. As strange as it sounds, sometimes they just can't determine where the blood is going and where it is coming from???

Wish I had a better answer.

Mom's blood count before she left for Florida the first weekend in January was down to 9. She figured by the time she got to Florida she would have to have blood added, but when she had it checked down there, it was up to 12. They don't usually add blood until it is down to 7.

My mother's kidneys are functioning at 12%. She should be on dialysis, but refuses so far saying she feels fine. She won't listen, but it's her life....I'm not going to spend it arguing with her.

Thanks Gayle for the info. I do believe my grandpas blood is building up somewhere like in the stomach area. I think the build up of blood is what caused his diverticulitis & the recent throwing up of blood.

Janet I'm so sorry you're mom won't listen to you. These older people can be a bit stubborn & not what to listen to anyone. I don't see why she wouldn't want dialysis, I know it's a bit of a time consuming process, but if it would make her feel better why not try it.

Grandpa seemed pretty good yesterday, but I honestly believe he's not long for this world. I think he's ready to go home & be with my grandma.

She says she doesn't feel bad so until she does she's not doing it. We've all tried to tell her that by the time she starts feeling bad....it probably won't help her much. But she's not a crazy out of her mind person....so we figure she knows the facts and it's her life.

Yes, that could be why he was throwing up blood OR his diverticulitis could be causing the bleeding - but you can usually find that in the poop samples. Puzzling.

I guess they are going to go ahead & do surgery on my grandpas arm. The break is actual worse now that it was a week ago. The pieces have moved farther apart. My g-pa doesn't seem super thrilled about the surgery, but everyone thinks that it will have a hard time healing without the surgery. My g-pa is willing to do anything that will lessen his pain. Please say prayers that the surgery gets scheduled soon & that all goes well & it reduces his pain.

I hope his surgery goes well and that the pain subsides quickly. Bless his heart!

My friend ended up having to have surgery on her arm for the same type of break. They kept saying it would heal on its own, but it did not and it was very very painful for her. The arm healed well after surgery. I hope it is successful and that your grandpa can get some relief!

Your poor grandfather...having to go through the pain for this long. I hope they can get it scheduled soon so he can start healing and the pain will cease.

The surgery is scheduled for tomorrow at 4.

Thanks for letting us know. I hope everything goes well!