Chuck Update, July 9th

Dad has declined pretty rapidly in the last 2 weeks.  He sleeps more, doesn't seem to be as hungry, and is very frail.    This past week, it was determined that he was probably a little dehydrated, so the staff has made sure he has plenty of water the last few days.  This has helped him, somewhat, but he is still in the final stages of this horrible disease. He won't get better, and I think mom got her hopes up that with the additional water, dad would rally and be more awake.   He is a little more alert, and his color is better.   But, the reality is, he will continue to decline.   I talked to mom just a few minutes ago, and she agrees he won't get better, but she is a little down.  She is now worried about how much longer he will last.   Reminded her that we just have take this one day at a time.  We have talked about Hospice, and when the staff feels like it's time, we will need to explore this with the doc.   Usually, Hospice is not in place until the doc feels the patient has declined to a point where they anticipate passing within 6-12 months.   Sallie did say that based on her experience, she would anticipate dad being on Hospice toward the end of this year.    We will just have to wait and see.    As far as mom goes, we need to keep in close contact with her.