My dad was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer in August. He has had 5 weeks of daily radiation and about 5 chemo treatments now. He is soon to be 80 years old. With so many health issues; 2 open heart surgeries, high blood pressure, diabetic and 2 strokes (one was a mini stroke within the past 3 weeks), I really worry about him. He is weak, has lost 55 pounds and is slowing down a lot.
My mom is his major care giver and has very little patience. I am afraid she is bringing my dad down quicker than need be. I know she loves him, she is scared and I believe she means well; but the way she handles dad's not wanting to eat, taking 20-30 minutes to take his pills (he takes many 3 times a day) and waking her up when he has issues during the night is something we are having trouble with. Family helps as often as they can, but it never seems to be enough to give her enough relief. She does suffer from bad knees, bad back and bad nerves anyway. He is currently in the hospital for an issue of bleeding (that turned out to be hemorrhoids) and she is hoping they will send him to a nursing home from the hospital. I don't know if that is the right answer...or will that bring him down even quicker because he isn't at home. My parents do not have enough income to pay for aides and nursing, although I've got a call into the Veterans Administration to see what help we can get from them. Does anyone have any suggestions or guidance for me? TIA