I wanted to write a quick update to inform everyone of Dad's true current state. If you happen to get ahold of him on the off chance he's awake, he will tell you he is feeling good and doing great. This honestly couldn't be further from the truth.
Dad has been off of all of his cancer medications for a while now and sadly the symptoms from the cancer itself have become very debilitating and very evident. He sleeps at least 19-20 hours out of 24, has no appetite (struggling to hit 500 calories a day), continues to lose weight rapidly, he is very withdrawn and closes himself in his room for the majority of the very small amount of time he is awake throughout the day. He rarely feels up to going anywhere or doing anything outside of sleeping. Getting him to come out of his room to do simple things like sit out on the deck to get sunshine and fresh air is a struggle. His increasing weakness has become very evident and he has started struggling with daily activities of living. The increase in the size and number of lung masses present has caused him to develop a very aggressive and persistent cough that flares up when he does anything more than sit or lay down.
At this point we have no idea what the next few weeks will look like, but I can tell you that he is declining at a pretty rapid rate (despite the brave voice/face he puts on for phone calls and visits and his false claims of doing great).
We have changed his do not disturb setting on his phone to be on from 7pm-noon as he generally goes to bed right after a small dinner and routinely sleeps in until almost noon. If you would like to get ahold of him, noon-2pm would be the best time. Outside of this window he is generally resting or trying to nap.
If you invite him to go somewhere he will most likely say yes, but honestly he just doesn't have the stamina to do much more than sit or lay down, so please keep this in mind when planning outings. He is generally always up for visitors so if you would like to arrange a time to come see him, please reach out to me (402-517-1735).
*Picture of Dad's typical "largest" meal of the day (this is a bread plate not a standard size plate for size reference). Beyond his "large breakfast" he eats nothing else throughout the day other than a toddler sized portion of whatever is made for dinner each night (out of pure obligation). His appetite has vanished.
