Today (Wednesday March 21, 2007) was doctor visit day. Elbert had an appt. with the eye doctor. He has glaucoma and the pressure has to be checked often. Then we grabbed a quick bite and headed to our family doctor. Some sort of checkup. There are so many it's hard to keep track. That is why I started keeping a journal about our daily ups and downs in this physical world.
We get called back to the exam room and are waiting for the doctor to stick her head in when Elbert has another anxiety attack. He'd had one before but this time the doctor (if she will hurry up and get in here with us) can see what is happening. Elbert was hyperventilating. Doc is cautious about adding more meds since he is already taking so many. I just love women physician assistants. They just seem more on the ball and a little more caring than the men doctors. Anyway, she did decide to increase his risperdal by 1/2 tablet a day to see if it would help.
I was so thankful that the attack happened when it did. You just know that the Lord is looking out for you. Because it happened when it did, it makes me feel reassured that my diagnosis of anxiety attack was correct. I just wonder what is going on in that head of his to trigger the anxiety. Sure, it's got to be scary to not remember anything, to not feel like you are yourself, that you don't know the people around you or even where you are. I guess that's enough to give anyone anxiety.
Changing the medication did not help right away or may have not helped at all. The attacks could have just worked through their course and ended. One night about a week after the doctors visit Elbert had another one. He was in bed and came to tell me that he had been trying to sleep on his back and couldn't. I suggested trying his side. That didn't work, either. And, then he said the strangest thing. He said, he was salavating so much that he was afraid he would strangle. It was a long night. First thing next morning I called the neurologist and he saw us two days later.
The explanation we got about the anxiety attacks was this: the neurotransmitters in Elbert's brain are not sending signals so that the body gets confused which triggers the anxiety.
2 comments:
It is hard to imagine you were in to the 7th year of Elbert's disease and the story still has 2 more years to bring it up to date.Your patience and understanding is boundless, you are also lucky to have such a terrific family near you
This was important info to get out there, Mom...hope it helped someone.
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