Probably too late - trying to get my mom to neurosurgery

Anonymousjpl123

I cannot believe this. My mom is in MC after a hospital stay. I have an appt with neurosurgeon to see if she has NPH and is a candidate tor a shunt. It’s in an hour and she is refusing to go. The staff are doing everything they can, including offering to go with her (unheard of).

It was VERY hard to get this appointment.

Quilting brings calm

Did you have any luck

I totally get this. I had to reschedule my step-dads initial appointment with a neurologist last month because he refused to go. The next available appointment was in November. He will probably refuse that one too. He’s in assisted living- doesn’t need memory care yet.

One good thing - the neurologists that specialize in memory care understand the difficulty. The receptionist totally got it when I told her he refused to come.

Anonymousjpl123

Thank god they worked a miracle and we are here. Thank you!!!!!

M1

Let us know the upshot....

Anonymousjpl123

Thank you all! @M1 and @Quilting brings calm ….(and others who might experience or be searching for NPH info)…

Thanks to heroic efforts of facility staff, we got to the appt. Just in time. We met with the neurosurgeon who would do the shunt. She has NPH, possibly underlying dementia of another type, and we now have lumbar puncture scheduled for 9/6. (I was hoping they could do same day, but this is fine). They had to do a lot of lab work and tests to see if she’s a surgery candidate assuming LP goes well.

One fly in the ointment: she has diabetes and needs to get her A1C way down. At her current level she’s not a candidate for surgery. Doctor said he’ll do it if it shows remarkable improvement in the right direction (won’t make us wait 3 months) but he needs to see that or he won’t do it because there are too many risks to proper healing.

Lesson learned: thank GOD I moved her to MC. Without the extra support I’ve already gotten I don’t know how I would have made it this far. They are amazing - their in. House doctor calls me, staff are incredible, and she gets a lot of extra support.

There is a chance that she will improve dramatically with surgery, but that’s still a big if. IF the lumbar puncture goes well, IF she can get sugar down, IF……..

If she does, she may even be able to move back to AL.

On the negative side, she has now decided I’m trying to keep her in hospitals so I can steal all her money, I’m the reason her sugar was so high, and to get her to go to the doctor I had to apologize for being “a bad daughter.” All fun times over here lol. I’m hoping I am actually compensated at the pearly gates.

Anonymousjpl123

Also just a note: while MC is a lot more expensive than AL, I did the math and at my place it is still way cheaper than a 1:1 aid in AL. I know that is not always an option, but these lessons are invaluable. Even if I move her twice (which is just between floors), it will have been worth it. I am so so so grateful for this community.