95 year old Mum in hospital but this pain in groin?

Good morning. I am just waiting for my brother to pick me up. I had a phone call this morning at 5.38 to say Mummy has another seizure and bit her tongue all medical staff are with her.

We went up yesterday afternoon and she was sitting in the chair. Quite happy and I said what have you been doing today? She said 'I have been going round and round. Waiting talking to some other lady who was waiting and the nurse kept saying 'in a minute'.'

So I guessed she had had the procedure and it was confirmed my Doctor to us that she had. He came in to see her and she said that nice young man said there was nothing wrong with me. He also couldn't understand why you are keeping me here. She had the Doctor laughing and he said you are right I am happy to say you are medically fit and lets see if we can get you home on Thursday.

Must go - but poor Mummy was happy, lovely time with her but.......not sure where we are now.

Thank you for all your support.

Thinking of you on another harrowing visit to the Hospital Gilly,hope the seizure did not cause too much damage.
Sending my support and oodles of love,nothing else I can add.

Gilly123, I am afraid to distress you more than you already are. However my sympathy is mainly with your mother.

There is actually an occasional problem with nursing care in nursing homes and hospitals concerning monitoring bowel movements. I am a qualified nurse and am experienced in care of the elderly including monitoring bowel function and treating constipation. Your mother's "heavily soiled nightie" may have been caused by constipation. This may seem contradictory and I could explain but I hesitate to do so on this page.

I am so sorry for her and I hope that my concern is unfounded. She seems to have a lovely personality.

I have myself raised this concern with medical authorities about my own friend (a patient in a psychiatric ward )and my concern was taken very seriously and I got a guarantee that nursing practice would be changed.

pS, Gilly, you may show this message from me to the ward sister or doctor.

Just a quick thought confusion and awkward behaviours are common in elderly people with UTI’s and may account for the uncharacteristic behaviour you have worried about.
The sweet build up drinks are more palatable in a glass of milk so a few of those a day with a bit of the build up drink may help, I am assuming they are the Fortis drinks)
Cathaters if kept clean shouldn’t lead to infections but I guess the catheter should be changed fairly often to prevent the infection from the entry point.

I came in last night and it was so late but I posted a message and its not here. I must have done something wrong.

She still has not come around from the fit. Her veins have closed down and then brought in two anesthetist whilst we were there in the morning to try and put a line in. Without success. The registrar has explained everything to us and how they are caring for her. She has fluid going in and oxygen. They are concerned because she is not coming to - she hasn't even opened her eyes. She is back in the stroke ward and even the Doctor who was caring for her has been in to see her to talk to her hoping she recognizes is lovely deep voice.

All the staff are so upset they are all in shock. She should have been home yesterday. We are trying to feel some constellation that this happened in the early hours of Wednesday morning. If it had happened just when she was home for her first night who knows how long it would have taken for the ambulance to get to her. She was helped immediately and for a long time and as they told us this one lasted 'a long time'.

Just to say Alexa - thank you for your thoughts - they were very much on the case for all this. She was monitored e.g. enema, checking to make sure no blockage higher up, etc, etc.

She was so close to her wish to come home. I may not post on here for awhile just thank you for helping me.

Gilly Oh! Gilly what a very unexpected and unwanted change in your dear Mum`s condition.An exceptionally worrying time,added to how fraught you have been I now fear for you,thus understand only too well that you maybe "shutting down" from posting as this scary,ongoing new development takes all your strength and every thought.

Please know I care and am thinking of you and your dear mum`s welfare.
Sending you both every blessing.

So sorry to hear this sending virtual hugs ?

Gilly123 thinking of you and your family, particularly Mummy.

Gilly, thank you so much for taking the time to reassure me amidst all your grief.

Gilly123 there are so many similarities between your experiences and mine. I really feel for you. The absolute roller coaster of caring for an elderly mum in hospital and the emotional ups and downs is so exhausting. I hope your mum fights back and I send you all my sympathy and love. Whatever happens you know that you have always done your best for her and she is loved and cared for.

Well here I am in the early hours of the morning trying to make sure what is happening is 'right'. I have trawled through the forums and it seems as in life we are all individuals and in dying no-one goes through the same process. Our Mum is not going to look up and say 'everyone is doing this right for me'. All she could be saying when she was talking is how kind they all are.

She is barely conscious, we talk to her, moisten her lips with the pink sponges and put vaseline on her lips. (I phoned last night and asked if they could check her eyes again.

They took down the drip that had finished and the have had a driver in since the afternoon of the huge fit (Wednesday at 5.38 I was phoned).

At the moment she doesn't need the oxygen mask and is breathing quiet good and deeply.

On Friday afternoon when our daughter & family arrived told me as they were leaving they said she opened her eyes and they called the nurse who gave her a little sip of water. They said she seemed to hold their hand. She said Gran needs lots of those sponges on her lips.

When we arrived about an hour later she was asleep. She did have two coughs which I hadn't heard before. Also she had a couple of good yawns. You think is she going to wake up again.

Yesterday (Saturday) we visited - very much asleep - I explained the nurse I thought every so often her brow would crease and I would hear the rumble in her tummy. Although I admit it was not very often. She never opened her eyes.

The bag of fluid finished and they said they were not putting up another. They said she has medication in the driver to help minimize her having another fit and if she was uncomfortable there are other medications they can administer this way.

In the afternoon her youngest sister came and did her hair for her, even though she was just lying on her pillow. It was very touching to watch - she used a portable curling tongs. We left her to have some time with her sister. Her sister said I asked her to open her eyes and look in the mirror to see how pretty her hair looked. She said she didn't respond and neither moved her hand to hold hers.

About 5 p.m. one of her adult grandchildren arrived and she phoned my brother, who has helped her at home, etc, to say phone at 10 p.m. She said whilst she was there she had 3 small seizures and the nurses were helping her. She said she thought she saw pain from her tummy so she massaged her tummy and she had a poo. So nurses cleaned and made her comfortable.

My brother did the call at 10 p.m. and phoned me to say he asked if we should come and the staff nurse, who we like, said she was very comfortable.

We did not drive up because we witnessed the care this particular nurse gave to her the first night. Very professional - attention to detail when checking and recording her signs even aspirating her (?) to make her comfortable not nice seeing what was in the tube. She said she had swallowed quite a bit during the fit but she was on antibiotics as prevention for infection from the procedures to control this fit. (although they have all been lovely) Our Mum coughed a bit and she immediately raised her bed head a little.

So back to now and thinking our our lovely Mum. I have my husband at present ranting on about this is not fair on Gran why can't they just help her go - they should not deny her water, etc. They could give her something to speed this up...

I have read so much over the last few hours as to the pro's and con's.

Just remembered - I have read that someone gave their relative some ice cream. Could that help?

So at the moment it is now time to try and sleep. I have felt better writing down my thoughts here. I have said to my husband I think we will drive back to the hospital, instead of making the morning phone call, to see how she is. (My brother from London is arriving again this afternoon. I said to my husband he will want some time with her on his own I am sure - so we will not go at the same time.)

This fit was Wednesday morning and here we are early hours of Sunday morning. I am sure there is no easy way but we all want the best and our Mum cannot tell us what she wants. I bet it would be a nice cup of tea.

Gilly
Will keep you and your mum in my thoughts and prayers

Gilly it is so good to hear from you and be updated with all that has and is happening with this sad and latest twist to your Mum`s condition, lying there deeply unwell in Hospital.
It is such a deeply fretful and worrying time for you all.You probably feel the need of doing something,anything that might retrieve the situation and bring your Mum round again to how she was barely days ago.....................but so sadly, there are these certain times in life when it is simply best to leave it to the professionally trained.

Nevertheless your heart remains right there and you feel the urge to do something positive.It is human nature.

Time now perhaps to be simply glad that she is receiving such good care......and for you to go easy on yourself Gilly..............take care and avoid getting overly stressed, as these situations are so very draining.

Please know my loving thoughts are with your Mum and with you.
Please remain strong. sent in the hope they comfort you.

I know this is an old post, and I haven't read all the answers - but as a Nurse and a Care home and Sheltered Housing Manager, groin pain has usually ended up being referred pain from a bad hip ...... hope this info is of use to someone!