Blood Pressure Down, Bladder Pressure Up!
Yesterday we had an appointment with Chester's general practicioner to check in on his blood pressure medications. He had been taking Lotrel at two different doses for the past month or so, and has experienced a lot of dizziness and fatigue. His blood pressure readings didn't go down very much either. So we went in for a change of medications, hoping another class or combination of hypertension drugs would work better. Fitzer gave him a higher dose of the ACE inhibitor medication and eliminated the calcium channel drug. He also gave Chester a diuretic to help flush out the excess fluid that is causing the swelling in Chester's leg and hand.
Today, Chester started both new drugs and so far, so good. He was only a little bit dizzy this morning, such a relief after being consistently dizzy for over a month. His blood pressure readings were good- we got several low readings, even after doing a half hour walk. And without the dizziness, we were able to do several periods of walking and hand stretching, in addition to a Home Depot excursion with Jaime. And as his blood pressure dropped, his bladder pressure was elevated, the "piss pill" doing its job.
So a day of relief. It was great to feel that the new medications were working without any huge side effects. We'll see over the next few days how they work over time.
As June approaches, Chester and I are doing the work together of phasing me out of full time companion care. Mostly, we are just having long conversations about the nature of companion work, what kind of help he needs, what he can do on his own, the role of support from family and friends. We will be articulating and asking for more specific kinds of assistance in the coming weeks- so stay tuned for ways that you can help out. His Mom will be in town for 10 days starting next week, and then his sister will be coming to stay with him for the first stretch of the summer. If you would like to do primary companion care for Chester this summer, be in touch so we can schedule your visit.
We are off to shower and get ready for bed. Take care, all.
Today, Chester started both new drugs and so far, so good. He was only a little bit dizzy this morning, such a relief after being consistently dizzy for over a month. His blood pressure readings were good- we got several low readings, even after doing a half hour walk. And without the dizziness, we were able to do several periods of walking and hand stretching, in addition to a Home Depot excursion with Jaime. And as his blood pressure dropped, his bladder pressure was elevated, the "piss pill" doing its job.
So a day of relief. It was great to feel that the new medications were working without any huge side effects. We'll see over the next few days how they work over time.
As June approaches, Chester and I are doing the work together of phasing me out of full time companion care. Mostly, we are just having long conversations about the nature of companion work, what kind of help he needs, what he can do on his own, the role of support from family and friends. We will be articulating and asking for more specific kinds of assistance in the coming weeks- so stay tuned for ways that you can help out. His Mom will be in town for 10 days starting next week, and then his sister will be coming to stay with him for the first stretch of the summer. If you would like to do primary companion care for Chester this summer, be in touch so we can schedule your visit.
We are off to shower and get ready for bed. Take care, all.
posted by Chrys Curtis-Fawley at 8:39 PM
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