"Today Is The Big Day We Find Out What Condition Dad's Condition Is In" by Ralph Zuranski
Well, today is the big day for my dad.
Yesterday, he survived the angiogram with flying colors. He went through the procedure with no pain, and lots of information to gain. I appreciate everybody's prayers and attribute his success to the many people that are praying for my dad and my family.
In an hour we will be meeting with the major cardiovascular surgeon at Sharp Hospital. He will give us an update on just how bad my dad's aneurysm actually is. He will also tell us whether dad is a candidate for a stent placed through an artery in his leg up into his abdomen. Or, whether he will have to have opened abdominal surgery to repair the aneurysm.
Sometimes, it is easy to get discouraged because of the up and down aspect of the entire episode...especially with a lack of sleep. Having to get up a couple times in the middle of the night to change diapers really kills your sleep cycle.
Since I am on night duty, even with my wife here, it is rare to get a full night's sleep. I have to apologize a lot to everyone for being cranky and not too thrilled every time I hear my dad yell "Yahoo!" and I don't mean surfing the internet. He has swithched from "You Hoo" to "Yahooo" because he knows how much I like to surf the internet.
It is really amazing he still retains his sense of humor, never complains and always has something nice to say to his two resident handlers... me and Janet. I wish I could say the same thing about myself.
My life is so frustrating sometimes, especially when I am working on an important project for Robert Channing, the world's foremost mind-reader. Every time I talk to him on the phone I know he knows what I am thinking. It is a little embarassing when I am battling anger and frustration over my choice to help my parents in their last days.
When I used to tell them, "Yes, I will take care of you when you can't in your old age!" I now wonder, what in the world was I thinking at the time...I'm just kidding.
Being there for them is worth its weight in gold, now and in eternity, even if some days it is hard to see the good things and blessing all around me. Occassionally, I feel my life sucks for only a little while, until I ask God for forgiveness for my bad attitude.
I guess I'm only human. Others think I am a paragon of virute...a real saint. If they only knew the truth. I am sure it is the same for everyone in my same boat. Some days, a good stiff shot of Doctor T is the only answer to changing dirty, smelly, filled to the brim poopy pants. (-:
PS The following scriptiure is a real help most of the time:
"But seek first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." Matthew 6:33
It is far easier to know that God is in control than me. Thankfully he knows what He is doing and everything is working out according to his marvelous plan for my life.
Sometimes, I feel that salvation is an awesome free gift, but santification, that is an onging process, is harder and more painful than I ever imagined.
Just when I feel I am doing a pretty good job, God stretches me a little farther and continues to help me become a more kind, loving and self-sacrificing person...it hurts to sacrifice my wants and desires. Is it the same with you?
Here is the next edition of the original tale of despair when the catastrophic illness occured.
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"Depression and mood swings are greater when one of your loved ones is trapped in the conventional medical system!" by Ralph Zuranski
Monday, June 7, was a rough day.
Dad looked like he would not last another day. Yesterday I was too depressed to write anything. Isn't it amazing just how much difference a day makes.
We were stunned, frightened and upset.
When we first came into the hospital ward, dad was sitting in a wheel chair. He was positioned next to the nurses station, unshaven and no feeding tube hanging from his nose. His head hanging down, resting on his chest. He really seemed out of it, his mind some other place.
Was this a punishment for pulling out the feeding tube during the night?
Was this just a way for the staff to keep an eye on him so he did not harm himself? Sometimes you just don't know. You are afraid to ask. You don't want to hurt any of the staff's feelings, especially if any are extremely sensitive to criticism. As my dad says, "Everyone wants you to do it their way. You don't have much of a say on what goes on around me."
We assumed it was the actions of a kind and loving staff.
There is a lot of hustle and bustle in a busy hospital ward. Perhaps sitting in the middle of the flurry of activity could be a way of breaking the intense boredom.
Sitting in the same room with the TV fixed on one station with no sound is boring to the extreme!
When you are trapped in your bed or in a wheel chair life is no fun, in face it is less than zero fun. Life could get worse but not by much. When you are paralyzed on one side, can't swallow and hooked to a bunch of tubes and machines the joy of living seems absent.
Dad seems to be handling despair and depression better than we are.
In his conscious moments, dad's wry sense of humor and positive outlook dominate. He is always concerned about mom and everyone else.
Dad's kindness, compassion and generosity to everyone he meets has affected many lives in a positive way.
Cards, letters and phone calls are like a tidal wave of caring and love. So many people who my dad has touched in a unique way miss his presence and servant attitude. It is so rare to find someone who always has kind things to say...that is more concerned about your problems than theirs.
Sometimes, the loved ones that are not stricken by illness have a harder time dealing with some one else's infirmity.
The highs and lows of life affect all of us. Few realize these cycles are natural. They are a blessing rather than a curse. Life would be so tedious if every day was the same. Highs and lows, good and bad days, create a range of emotions that keep us from being robots.
Biorhythm cycles are one of the most valuable discoveries for those who are trained how to use them in a beneficial way.
In the late 1800s, Doctor Fliess and Swoboda independent of each other, discovered a 23 day physical and 28 day emotional cycle. They studied the fluctuations of fevers in their patients and the date and time of their deaths.
Biorhythm cycles were a statistical analysis of major events occurring at the weakest times...when people were ill.
The doctors recorded the conditions of their patients during life-threatening events and searched for numerical cycles that repeated. They found the 23 day physical and 28 day emotional cycles had the greatest impact.
Biorhythm pioneers discovered consistent biological cycles that affected most of their patients.
They even noticed that the same dosage of medications, surgeries and other therapies had more powerful effects at certain times during the biorhythm cycles. Soon they developed a strategy of treatment that maximized their patients' survival.
The 28 day emotional cycle seemed most powerful during the full moon.
This may sound strange but many doctors and researchers who studied cycles of activity in their patients noticed dramatic changes at the time of the full moon. This is where the term "lunacy" originated. Stories about werewolves, murderous mood swings and increases in one-on-one violence by lunatics fueled this theory.
A high percentage of the body is water.
The moon radically affects the movement of tides. Researchers feel the gravitational affects of the moon also affect the water in our bodies. There is a vast field of subtle energies that affect every person, animal and plant.
Few researchers have given subtle energy medicine the credit it deserves.
Just following your body's natural rhythms with a biorhythm chart provides valuable information. Once you see the correlation between high and lows in your life and the flow of biological energy, you are light years ahead.
Realizing these energy cycles are predictable, you can plan ahead.
For most of my life, I kept a daily diary...recording everything that happened in great detail. When I learned about biorhythms in 1970, I was astounded. There was a direct relationship between physical and emotional critical days and radical changes...accidents, injuries, huge mistakes, emotional outbursts, great joy, special accomplishments.
Every year the physical, emotional, intellectual and intuitive cycles all travel the same pathway twice a year.
Dramatic events occurred when the biorhythm cycles added together. The energy combinations during the high and low phases are magnified. At these times, people make life changing decisions or suffer major accidents or illnesses. Usually, this occurs when the cycles go from energy output to recuperation or the opposite.
People are most unstable when the biological energies are changing.
Researchers discovered that during the crossover, people's reaction time could slow down by 2 to 2.5 minutes. This is a phenomenal decrease, especially when we drive cars, fly planes, make decisions at accelerated speeds.
When I checked for biorhythm critical day matches, for times predicted to be unstable or extreme, the relationship jumped out like a sore thumb.
Yikes! If only I had known about biorhythm cycles at those times. Perhaps with more planning, taking a few extra moments before acting, checking my work would have saved my major traumas and mistakes.
Yes! I was freaked out by the correlations!
Biorhythms scared me. I thought that every time the cycles crossed the critical line, an accident or bad decision awaited in the wings. When the cycles combined together, getting out of bed was a frightening experience.
Crossover days along with low and high days does not mean bad things are going to happen.
After months of trial and error, I suddenly realized the value of biorhythms. You could plan your activities to take full advantage of the different flows of energy. You can track your healing powers. You can optimize your performance in sports.
When the energy is high take advantage of the opportunity to get more done.
When my energy is high, I schedule my time to complete as much work as possible. At these times, more is accomplished in one day than an entire week when energy is low.
When energy is low, I rest and recuperate and prepare for the maximum output days.
When I go into the recuperation phase my life strategy changes. I sleep more and go to bed earlier. My focus on eating the best diet possible and taking all my supplements provided big rewards. I rest more and do less, building up my energy levels so I can get a tremendous amount accomplished when energy is high.
When dad had his stroke, we printed out his biorhythm chart immediately.
His stroke began late Saturday night, May 22, and into the early morning Sunday, May 23. Dad's physical, emotional and intellectual cycles were low and in the recouperation state.
To Be Continued