12 November 2025
Just catching up on the last two days, which have been something like a break in the weather of the last year.
But first, if you've been worried about Sylvia Welch, Joyce's amusing roommate who had amused her sisters on their recent visit. I discovered she'd been moved to another room when I greeted her caregiver today.
Golden Heights had asked me if they could move Joyce when she was in the hospital and I refused. I wanted things to be familiar to her when she returned. And the bathroom a few steps from the bed.
So apparently they moved Sylvia.
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IF I'VE BEEN REMISS about updating Joyce's weight (and I have), it's because the numbers are little misleading.
A week in the hospital with IVs and saline dripped into her veins to boost her blood pressure resulted in a large weight gain to 125 lbs. The first day back, though, she dropped four of them and two more the second day to 119. And that's probably not all yet.
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ON THE EQUIPMENT FRONT, Sheik the CNA did recover her wheelchair in another room (outfitted with an oxygen tank) on Monday before we went to Kaiser for her debridement Tuesday.
And yesterday I found her leg supports (which are a lot lighter than the substitutes we found) among the unclaimed wheelchairs where Sheik had found her trekking pole.
So even if your name is on something, it means nothing there.
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YESTERDAY as Joyce was doing sets on the SciFit, Dr. Holland's office called to make a few appointments, starting with surgery to close the wound on Dec. 29.
There will also be an office visit with him on Dec. 12 and a 40-minute pre-surgery phone interview on Dec. 9.
This long adventure may, indeed, come to a conclusion on Dec. 29. Although no one could say how long after surgery she would remain in the hospital, it was worth celebrating that we have a surgery date to close the wound once and for all.
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THE DEBRIDEMENT YESTERDAY went well, as always. Jennifer the RN ("She's so nice," Joyce kept saying on the ride home) thought the wound was not at all infected and looked ready for closing.
She debrided it and wrapped it up and sent up on our way.
The time change meant we drove home during sunset, which was a beautiful cyan and magenta canopy that looked like someone had painted it.
As we sat at a stop light on Junipero Serra at 19th, I saw a Christmas tree and window lined with lights in one of the Parkmerced towers. The only one in all those windows.
I pointed it out to Joyce. Our first Christmas decoration of 2025.
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Today Leonie and Jayce evaluated Joyce for physical and occupational therapy. They came in as she was in the bathroom so I didn't help her get up from the toilet and pull up her pull-up. She did it herself and walked out to join us.
They watched as I walked her to the scale and then we all walked back to the gym where I talked about her balance and confessed that yesterday in the garage, she had fallen, hitting her head against the car whose thin sheet metal was fortunately forgiving.
She just loses her balance and always falls backwards. I told Leonie I thought it might be a symptom of the dementia but I'd like them to work on it.
They said they'd start a five-day-a-week program with her, based on the routine I've established with her: bathroom, dress, walk, exercise on the SciFit.
I couldn't have been happier.