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2tsnana Asked March 2013

Can symtoms of CHF/ COPD change quickly ?

My mom's health was horrible when she had the stroke episode on New Year's Eve...fluid leaking from both legs, falling all the time, weight loss, copd, her 4 day stay in the hospital left her not being able to walk ... When she went into the rehab in the NH everything started to get better quickly, one thing she could not smoke... she progressed, gained weight, they got her legs straighten out she started walking with a walker again, was placed on oxygen when necessary. She is out of rehab now and placed in a room. Beginning around the 3 week of February she started having to have oxygen all the time, in full blown CHF (had issues with that for years) is getting where doing anything is a challenge, has had numerous breathing episode where she cannot catch her breath. she is coughing up some nasty stuff. The head nurse suggested hospice and they came and did an accessment on her yesterday. My mom wanted all testing to stop (chest xrays, blood work etc..) that has happened she has told me now more than once she is dying. Her mind is foggy I know from lack of oxygen and the mean, paranoid woman she has been for years is returning again. She had really got where we liked each other and were enjoying each other's company. I went yesterday and she was still in her PJ's which I haven't seen in a long time. How does ones health go from one extreme to the other I do not know what to expect from one day to the next. She should have been on oxygen I know for ahwile but she smoked so much she would for sure have blown something up.Her mental state has changed from bad to alert to bad again. She is starting to reprimand me like a child and is starting to stay mad at me all the time again. I really thought we were going to end this in a better frame of mind but that is declining again.. I am hoping hospice will help us to not go back to what we have always been dysfunctional..I am old enough to know better than to expect a silk purse out of a sow's ear.

2tsnana Mar 2013
They have put her on another antibiotic for preventative measure, she has asked them not to do anymore bloodwork or xrays. Her veins are terrible and she is just tired of being poked so much. I really believe that when she first got there and was in rehab she tried really hard to improve so she wouldn't have to stay,but she just physically is a mess. Hospice came for their assessment ----

Hopeless Mar 2013
Yes, CHF symptoms can quickly change. My Father has CHF/High Blood Pressure/End stage kidney disease. Every few months he is admitted into the hospital for one thing or another. And this last time, the day before Christmas he was in the hospital for a week. Some idiot Dr. decided to lower his lasix from 40 mg to 20 mg which caused his CHF to present itself. His left lung was filling with fluid and his feet became extremely swollen and breathing labored! It's important to monitor their diet, sodium intake and weight in order to control CHF. Sounds like your mother has alot of different things going on. It's best that you speak with her Doctor's so you can get a clear understanding where she is at regarding her health.

Good luck and please keep us posted.

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vw9729 Mar 2013
Without knowing more about your mother, it's hard to say. If she is still of sound mind, she could have more wrong with her than she's telling you. My father-in-law didn't tell us that his lung cancer had come back and he decided he wasn't going to treat it again (chemo, etc.). So when he started getting really sick, we didn't know what was going on. But he (and so does your mom) has the right to decide whether to accept treatment or not, and it sounds like your mom doesn't want to be treated. Hospice is wonderful and should be able to keep her pain level down. It sounds like she might be snippy because she's in pain. Maybe you should talk to her or hospice about her frame of mind and see if this could be the problem. Good luck!

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