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Hi, Gavin –
It’s hard to tell about his pain as he can’t tell us much – the skin of his feet and backs of his hands seems very sensitive as he’ll flinch if you even touch them and he’s been resisting wearing the diapers — so I was wondering if he’s experiencing the burning sensation in the skin that I read about in a couple of posts —
We’re using the long-acting morphine but will be talking to the nurse tomorrow — it’s hard to tell if the morphine is helping and the nurse mentioned she could discuss use of Methadone with the hospice doctor.
The lactulose seems to be working well but we’ll have to monitor it carefully as his stools are getting very soft and we’re worried he’ll start having diarrhea.
As the nurse said, we won’t know until we try and every person’s reaction to medication is different. So, onward…
Hi Rose,
Welcome to the site. Sorry that you had to find us all and I am sorry also to hear about your dad. But I am glad that you have joined us all here as you will get so much support and help from everyone here, you have come to the right place. We know how you feel and what you are going through right now. I was my dads carer during his fight with CC and can so relate to everything that you say.
How is the morphine working for your dads pain? My dad was also using Lactulose twice a day morning and night and that worked for him. He tried Movicol as well but that didn’t work very well so he stuck with the Lactulose and that worked better.
We are all here for you Rose, so please ask any questions that you have and we will do what we can to help in answering them. This is a tough situation, but from what you have said it sounds like you are all doing everything that you can for your dad.
My best wishes to you and your dad,
Gavin
My husband also took Senna regularly. He found his pain increased if he didn’t. Hope it works well for your dad. Blessings, Susan
Lainy –
Just to let you know that hospice ordered Cholestyramine and Lactulose for my father – according to the drug sheet, the cholestyramine is supposed to bind onto cholesterol and the most common reaction is supposed to be constipation so the lactulose will counter that and also the side-effects of the morphine — after taking one dose of both, he finally had a bowel movement (after two days without any) — I was hopeful that he would feel better but instead, he didn’t want to eat this morning and was all curled up in bed.
I guess all we can do is deal with whatever each day presents – and each day has been so different!
Yes, the nurse case manager has also been stressing watching him because of the danger of him falling. Yesterday, he got out of bed and somehow lay down on the floor! It took hours before he agreed to us helping him up and even with his actively trying, it took the three of us to get him on to the bed. It was harrowing.
Mahalo for all your kind thoughts!
Rose. It was last December and I am trying to remember but I know they gave him a stool softener (Senna) at night and a laxative type in the morning. They worked very well that way.
Our very biggest last trip was to Hawaii. Teddy had never been there and we cruised the Islands. Great memories!
Yes, it is extremely hard to watch a loved one go through this. We have to be very strong but loving. You have come to the right place though as you will receive a lot of support here. Please keep us posted.Mahalo (thank you) for your input — the nurse case manager comes tomorrow so I’ll ask her about the Dulcolax and Senna (what is it?). They gave him morphine when he was at the ER so they gave him a stool softener as well and it really worked.
I know a lot of this behavior is not my dad but it’s so hard to see him like this!
Hi, I am so sorry to hear your father has been diagnosed with cc at such an elderly age. I hope Hospice is able to make him comfortable. Morphine made my dad even more constipated, but he used lactose and it did help. I haven’t heard the medication for ammonia levels cause diarrhea. My dad had a hard time drinking it. We dissolved the powder in orange juice. It will be best for you to hire a caregiver, if possible. My dad would not let us and my sister and I were worn out. But we did it and gave him all our love. The biggest danger is the possibility of your dad falling. My dad wanted to get up many times and was not able to. It wasn’t funny then but one time he said if I didn’t let him get up he was going to kocock me. Hospice can also give your dad medication for anxiety. He will have to have around the clock supervision. Bless his heart that he has to go through this. I pray for you all to have strength. Take care.
Hello Rose and welcome to our wonderful family. I am so very sorry to hear about your father but I feel the doctor was right. There is no way I would put a person who is 95 through this journey. It is so unfair to live so long and then be taken this way. Please understand that however your father is reacting is the Cancer not entirely him. My husband was on 350mg of Morphine 2 times a day (time released) with hourly breakthrough Morph of 175mg. They also gave him
Ativan which kept him calm. Morphine does bind up the system. Teddy took Senna once a day. I don’t beleive Milk of Magnesia will work at this point. They do have things they can try and the bottom line is they must make him comfortable. Please address your concerns with Hospice and make sure your father is not in pain and that he gets something to help him relax. Pleae keep us posted, we all care.My father, who is 95 years old, was diagnosed with bile duct cancer a month ago. He lives with my brother and sister-in-law and they had noticed he was getting jaundiced. When the internist saw him, he ordered blood testing and arranged for a CT scan the following week. However, my father became so lethargic after this office visit that we decided to take him to the emergency room. There, they did the CT scan. As the first showed an abnormality, the ER doctor recommended a CT scan with contrast and it confirmed the bile duct cancer.
My father was admitted to the hospital and a gastroenterologist came in the next day to discuss insertion of a stent. However, by the end, he stated that the risks greatly outweighed any benefits of that procedure for my father and ended by saying that he would not do it. We then met with the palliative care/geriatric specialist and she recommended in-home hospice care. So
arrangements were finalized and my father went back to my brother’s home the following day.Because of his recent complaints of pain, the hospice doctor prescribed a long-acting morphine which we’ve used a couple of times. However, it seems to be making him constipated (the Milk of Magnesia they said to use doesn’t seem to be working). Also, the last two days, he’s gotten very upset and combative when we tried to take off his diaper, clean and change his clothing.
The nurse’s aide who comes in three times a week to give my father a bed bath noticed this when he came this week and talked to the nurse. So now they are going to try the medication to lower his ammonia level. I’m afraid, though, that if the medication causes a lot of diarrhea, it’s going to create an impossible situation.
I’m really wondering what we should do and any input would be helpful. Also, we’re thinking of hiring a caregiver, maybe at night, so my brother and sister-in-law can get some rest as the pain medications seem to make my father even more restless.
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