I really need your opinions, please

[Popoki_Nui]

So....for those who may be wondering: I have Ed here at home after his two-week hospital stay. "Failure to thrive" is the official diagnosis, although he also has some other medical problems consistent with being 80 years of age.
I get to play Mother Hen for the next two or three weeks while we try to sort out a long-term solution for him. We may just buy him a new home -probably a newer mobile home in the same park- and dispose of his creaky old one somehow (four-alarm-fire comes to mind, or something involving a bulldozer or wrecking ball), and arrange for Meals-On-Wheels and regular home care thru the community nursing system. This makes Ed happy happy, since he will have a large measure of independance, but also have his nutritional and medical needs tended to. HE likes the idea of a new mobile; he now realizes his old place is probably beyond repair. Finally!
For now, he is eating up my cooking like a starving puppy, putting on weight nicely, and generally feeling friskier and looking better than he has in quite a while.
Things are looking up at this point. Fingers crossed.

[mimitabby]

well, great news! you sound like a wonderful person!

[crazycanuck]

Popoki..what a nice friend!! Thank you for helping Ed out

What a nice lady you are.

c

[spokewench]

I hope I have a friend as great as you when I'm older. You are a sensational spirit. It makes me cry to read that you care so much.

[Bluetree]

((((( Popoki ))))) You are wonderful! The world needs more people like you.

[Wahine]

Hurray for winning at least a couple of little battles. Ed is truly lucky to have you with him. I hope things keep going well and that you will soon have him in his new mobile with the help that he needs from healthcare.

[Mr. Bloom]

Popoki...Faced this with my parents a three years ago. They are now in "assisted living"...and doing well.

We eased them there:

• first, we acknowledged the problem (making it seem like it was about "US" not them...you know..."we are unable to be on call 24 hours a day and it concerns us that something might happen while we're not there."
• second, "let's go check it out together. Give it a try for 30 days, if you don't like it, then we'll try something different. We won't sell your house"
• finally, bring familiar things into the facility. We used their own furniture, etc.

After a couple of weeks, they found a routine, saw the benefits, and after a few months, they were ready to sell their house and belongings.

Today, they're happy and glad they moved. The strange thing is that to this day (they're approaching 80), they believe that everyone there is old and infirm and that they 'don't belong with these old folks'. In reality, they are the most infirm ones there.

It's wonderful that you care...he is a blessed man.