What Would We do Without Water? #hydration #health #elderlyissues #atozchallenge

Most of my clients don’t need to pump their own water though some are on well water.

I recently got a call from adopted family in Africa. ” My wife is sick and the baby is bloated.There are no resources and no medicine and the hospitals are out of reach.”

Have your wife lay down and drink 6 bottles of water each day and give the baby spoonfuls of water. (clean water )

Dont get me wrong water is not the answer to all our problems but hydration is a huge issue for our health.

***

Many Elderly are not getting enough water (coffee and soda drinks do not qualify as hydrating fluids). I know a caregiver that would stop all fluids at 5 pm so there would be no night-time brief changes. That convenience puts an elderly person at risk.

Elderly people often don’t drink until they are thirsty. All of our senses diminish with ages so most seniors are not getting enough hydration.

I have seen that clients with a better diet and hydration seem to have higher function.

I am all for health for the elderly. I have had several family members who  were/are chronic illness and drug free into their 90s. They were all active, ate well and water was their main fluid.

 

I drink about 80 oz of water each day – how about you?

 

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Fragile #Elderly #atozchallenge

 fragile skin

fall crackles beneath feet

blue eye question

 sky hidden behind clouds

arms reach for emptiness

wind blows yesterday

your toes wave at me

another good day

***

People may not know it but skin is a barrier to disease and in the elderly skin is a battle front.  Broken Skin breaks and tears like tissue paper. A little bump against a chair can cause a big bruise or even a tear which can then be a wound. When we are “young” and active a wound heals in days in the elderly that same wound can take weeks to months. The worst wound I saw when I was a wound care nurse was in a bed bound woman whose bed sore had become a tunnel. That tunnel was about 305 mm (approx 1 foot). Through daily care, hydration and diet we were shrinking that tunnel. Needless to say those wounds on your backside are painful.

One of my main goals (with the elderly) is always up and out of bed. If they are now bed bound they need to shift as often as possible. If they can do that themselves so much the better but everyone favors their left or right side so they need to shift. In the hospital we often have to position our patients that used to be every two hours.

If you have a family member who is now in bed, get that person moving. If they cannot use pillows to wedge them on one side then the other. Legs up (on a pillow) legs down. And please keep them clean. Uric acid in briefs and just from our skin breaks down skin.

Places where we become fragile are sacral area (its boney there) elbows, ankles.

If you read my post a few days ago I mentioned water. Water will actually help keep skin cells plumper. Elderly do  not drink alot of fluids because then they have to get up (and go).

I think my letter “W” will be for water. I have learned to have a great respect for that molecule.

My leaf photograph reminds me so much of the elderly clients I have had over the years. They are fragile but with a singular beauty.

Any good skin tips? Lotions or awesome soaps????

Hope you are enjoying the A to Z challenge and thanks for your visit.

 

Days Before Lemonade #poetry #health

Squeezed out and fresh

lemons are such a sour fruit

and when in reference to a car

 a dud, should be given the boot

But we were speaking of health

“an apple a day”

anything to keep

the doctor away

“At 20 I was a lemon”

she said

“I turned yellow at 30”

my reply

we joked about”it”

until tears came to our eyes

“I never expected

to be a ripe and  80

a waver in her voice”

 “gladly, we are still running”

“6 feet under

was my other choice”

 “cars and bodies are not meant to merge”

I smiled

“have another glass of lemonade”

“oh no, I couldn’t splurge”

****

I met a beautiful young woman years ago; we spent the morning talking about being “lemons” or broken down in our prime. I was grateful for my decision to take the daily pain (and look for natural methods) rather than take drugs for relief. This sweet lady was on $2000 a month of narcotics to alleviate the pain caused by a life changing auto accident. Health is so often taken for granted until we lose it.

Today’s prompt at Poet’s United Midweek Motif “Health.”

Thousandth Teardrop is an archived poem about pain

Life Giving Green #aomugi #haiku #health #spring

This haiku (in bold) is written by Sono-jo, a haiku poetess and pupil of Buson on grasses and leaves in Spring:

te wo nobete ori-yuku haru no kusaki kani

as I go along,
stretching out my hand and plucking
the grasses and leaves of Spring

**

 Catch the waving breeze

green head of the barley wheat

growing ever strong

*

growing ever strong

feed to those needing health

reviving spirits

*

reviving spirits

need for life’s flow in and through

spring lives in  our eyes

Thanks to Carpe Diem’s prompt of the health giving Aomugi or green barley. may spring bring health and vitality to all!

Honey Where Are You? (Flash Fiction#Alzheimers)

I looked today

turned around

What did you say

Did you make a sound

“Honey I love you”

I heard her say

With all we’d been through

My memories at times seem so far away

************************************

After speaking with a dear friend whose wife is captive in Alzheimer’s, I was inspired to write this Fiction for him, for her

Thanks to Monkey Man who weekly hosts our flash fiction in 160.  Amazing what people can do with a few words. Join us

Were you having sex in the 60s???

Just read an interesting health article about Baby Boomers and sex. Yes those of us from the Baby Boomer era are aging but there is good news. If sex was good in the 1960s, it can be great when you are hitting 60. Why not?

People are healthier and living longer. Older women are dating men 20 years their junior and having a great time.While men are loving women of any age.

If you are a baby boomer, there are some things to watch for. The days of free sex aren’t so fun and free if you contract an STD.

Health Tips Here

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via Amplify.com