July 13, 2013

Dear Tatum,

On the first full day of Grandma being home she went through five pairs of pants. She only went to the bathroom once without needing them to be changed and cleaned. I ran a load of laundry the first time, but smartened up and put the rest in the washer to soak until the end of the day. Incontinence is one thing, and diarrhea another, but when you put them together… it's worse. My anxiety about bringing her home was not without reason, but we made it through the day.

I worked in Grandma's garden in the morning, within shouting distance. The rest of the day was spent inside cooking, cleaning, and waiting for bowel movements. I used to think there was a pattern to them, like within an hour of eating, or something like that. But no, there is no pattern. Without going into too many details, the level of clean up makes me agree with the French Prairie that Grandma really does need constant care. It is just too much for her to handle. We talked about it and, thankfully, Grandma can see the sense in that. But she will forget she thought this way when she is feeling better. She goes back and forth between understanding her needs and thinking she's just fine on her own. She's struggling with losing her independence. 

We went to a gastroenterologist yesterday and made an appointment for a colonoscopy. Dr. Epstein would like to determine what the problem is to see if there is a solution. Even fixing one or the other--diarreah or incontinence--would be a big help. 

I've started organizing Grandma's bills so I can set up automatic and/or electronic bill pay. I now have power of attorney and my name has been added to her checking account. I've set up direct deposit for one set of checks but still need to do it for social security. There is a lot to do.

I talked to Rice and he says you've been to the lake a lot but will only sit in the water to cool off. I think you would like swimming if you gave it a try. I hope you're having fun at the lake!

Love,

Gin

Dr. Epstein