dehydration

[kimmek]

HI all....

I am at my moms this morning and she does not seem to be feeling well, although the last week or 2 have been pretty bad due to the radiation burns, something is not right today.

I took her yesterday to see the radiation doc, and she gave her an antibiotic because she thought maybe she was getting an infection since her plegm had a green tint to it, and put her on a stronger pain med (oxycotin). But this morning she says the pain is no worse, but she doesnt feel right (nor does she look right). I was wondering about dehydration, maybe the symtoms or something. she didnt drink much of anything yesterday ,uch less eat, and said she woke up 2 times to go to the bathroom during the night, but never could go either time. But then she has a little cough too this morning. Mom did say the new pain med makes her feel funny and she doe not like that. I have already put a call into the onc doc or nurse to call me, but as we all know that may be awhile before we hear back. I figured i could get some ideas or info here much quicker.

Thanks all for any and all thought on this.

Kim

[renee_ky]

When Scott was dehydrated, the first thing the nurse look at was his tongue. You are looking for white, if she is dehydrated, it will look a little "hairy". I know that sounds weird, but that is how the nurse was able to tell just how bad Scott's dehydration was.

Good luck to Mom!!

[jamie]

Kim,

I dont really have an answer for you, but I do think its a good idea at the very least to call the dr. and alert him of your moms symptoms. Your mom says she dosent feel right, and I firmly believe that a person knows their own body better than any old dr.

Urge her to call. Its better to be a worry wart, then to wait and see what happens...

Let us know kid...

Jamie

[Snowflake]

Kim,

Talk to your mother's GP, as well. Could be symptoms of something that the oncologist doesn't normally see.

Hope she's on the mend soon!

Becky

[cathy]

Kim,

another way to test for dehydration is to lightly pinch the top part of your hand(the opposite side of the palm) if the skin doesnt go back down, then theres a chance your dehydrated..Let us know

[Ann]

Kim, I hope things are OK. I think calling the doctor was the right move. During Dennis's treatment, I know the one thing that was constantly drilled into us was "Drink Plenty of Fluids." I was like a mother hen, constantly walking around with a bottle of Gatorade in hand. I'm sending up an extra prayer for you and your mom!!!

[Connie B]

Dear Kim,

When I dehydrated I felt like I had the flu! I was very weak and just felt like crap!!! I hope you get some answers from the Doc. Some meds just don't work for some of us, and thankfully they have others that do!

Good luck!

Hugs,

Connie

[Ry]

Another easy test is to look at the urine. If it is dark she is not getting enough fluids. A healthy body should have almost clear urine. Since she can't urinate, I'd say she is most likely dehydrated so start pushing the fluids.

[TAnn]

Please know how serious dehydration is. Start giving her gatorade right away and insist on talking to the nurse right away. When I was on chemo I became severely dehydrated and it caused my heart rate to soar to 165. (Normal is 75-80). I was immediately started on iv fluids.

Also, the antibiotics can be making her feel out of sorts too. Hope she feels better soon.

TAnn

[kimmek]

Thanks all for the quick responses. We were at the doctors office by 930am once i talked to the nurse they had me bring her right in. They are such a wonderful group there. It was decided that she was not dehydrated, she had some blood work and chest exray also. Everything seems normal, even good. Actually by the time the doc came in Mom was feeling silly for even coming as she was feeling better and looked better.

It was decided that the new pain med made her feel "different" and had I had my thinking cap on i would have realized this. For someone who never took any pain meds after she came home from open heart surgery anything like that makes her feel different. And of course the not knowing whats wrong with you always makes things worse. So for now we are going to go with that theory as there is really nothing else they can check. Thanks again all its great to know you all are here. hopefully we will get better at recognizing the "false alarms"

Kim

[J.C.]

Late for your post,

but happy all looks good now.

Hugs

J.C.

[ginnyde]

My mantra = Better safe than sorry.

Glad it was an easy solution.

[Nushka]

You did exactly the right thing. I am glad it turned out to be something easy to fix. Glad she is feeling a little better.

Nina