@kjofkw @compmom @HImom @Hippobirdy @greenbutton @gouf78 , Thank you all for the welcome and thoughts. Let me respond to your questions:
What’s causing the TIAs/strokes? Some sort of clot. They are not sure from whence it is coming, so he’s been wearing a cardiac monitor off/on for the last month (since the first stroke). The MDs switched his blood thinners after he had symptoms the second time; he should be at a therapeutic level by the end of the week.
My understanding is that home health PT is limited to people who cannot physically go to outpatient therapy. Dad might get to that point soon, but at this point he is not house bound. I’ll keep tabs on this and have my mom reach out to his doc for a referral if he continues to decline.
From a medical perspective, Dad looks ok for his age. He has hypertension (controlled on meds) and high cholesterol (same), but other than that, is ok. His world has gotten smaller over the last few years–his doc made him give up horseback riding a few years ago, and after decades of singing barbershop, he decided to stop. His strength has gradually decreased with increased sitting in front of the television, which meant that he no longer felt comfortable getting on/off the ground to do all the gardening. I bought my folks a sitting elliptical a few years ago, but Dad’s consistency/interest has never been high unless my mom insists, and she gets tired of “suggesting” he try it. I talked about sit to stand as insurance for being able to stay in your home and toilet independently, but maybe I didn’t phrase it enough as a goal. That’s a good idea.
I tried asking Dad months ago what his criteria was going to be for when to switch to the downstairs bedroom and he couldn’t come up with any. I can make another attempt to talk to Mom/Dad about throw rugs, cords, closed shoes (toe/heel) and installing more grab bars in the downstairs bathroom, as they only have them upstairs. But, you’re right, maybe I can figure out a third party to reinforce the message.
Mom is slowing down, but in comparison looks like a pillar of health. The biggest difference is that she is willing to fight to stay active on some level. She’s definitely in better shape cognitively, as the latest stroke affected his short term memory.
Ah, tone on the internet is always iffy. I didn’t take my Dad’s lack of interest in PT personally; I just find it somewhat ironic that this is the one thing that I could actually be helpful with, and this is where he pushes back. So instead they call me their “bulldog” at the ER, because I’m the one that asks the questions.
Thanks again for the welcome.
