Chapter 528 - Exelon Changes

Shortly after 0930 each morning this week she became drowsy, resulting in going to sleep for up to an hour. Because I have not been putting the FitBit on her right ankle for quite some time now there is no record of her dyskinesias except for my notes. Tuesday was a particularly bad day and of course she did not attend the Dance for PD session. Several bolus doses (1 ml) during the day failed to reduce the dyskinesias. By 2200 her whole body was writhing so I gave her a Kalma which failed to send her to sleep, although she did become calmer. A little after midnight I gave her two soluble Panadol after which she began spitting a lot of phlegm into tissues. Then after rolling her partly onto her right side she calmed and was asleep at 0100 Wednesday. A night to remember.

She was drifting into sleep as I left on my respite hours at 0940 after the Wild Dog carer arrived. I attended the Dementia Carer's group meeting. I rang to check on her at lunch time. The carer said she woke about 1100. At 1530 I took her to her dentist for a check up and clean, returning home at 1630 when she was too "dopey" to help safely from the car, so I reclined her seat and wound down the windows. a pillow behind her head (the car was in the garage). She slept until 1800.

I had collected the Exelon script earlier in the week but did not apply the patches until after she was weighed at the Rehab section of the local hospital on Thursday. Seated on her wheel chair she weighed 71 kg then I transferred her to a chair and weighed the wheel chair at 15.9 kg. Later at home I weighed her clothing, shoes and duodopa pump at 0.7 kg, so her actual body weight is 55 kg. We left Rehab for lunch at the Soldier's Club. She did not sleep Thursday afternoon.

After she was showered and dressed on Friday morning I attached her first Exelon patch at 0845 and fitted the FitBit to her right ankle at 1035. Her day was bad. The FitBit recorded strong dyskinesias all day except when she slept for maybe 30 minutes at 1100. She sneezed a couple of times during the day and reported "feeling like sneezing". I took her with me to buy some items at Bunnings to brighten her but she was happy to return home. She tasted a little of her evening meal of grilled fish and pasta, had it warmed twice the rejected it. The Wild Dog Carer arrived before she  ate much sweets so the whole meal was thrown out.

Yesterday, Saturday, was a good day. I replaced the Exelon patch at 0820 onto her right shoulder, yesterday's was on the left. She slept from about 1015 for an hour. No sleep during the afternoon. Her only comment during the day was that her feet felt "tight" at 0630. The FitBit showed minimal dyskinesias throughout the day. From her point of view a good day but from mine I felt listless and down so I spent most of my time sitting in the sun reading a book.