mother hep c final liver failure HELP

[orphanannie26]

reaching out to connect & share. im 35. my mother is 55 and in the last stages of liver failure caused by hep c. no transplant. her body couldnt handle interferon. no hospice per her request. her husband cares for her 24/7. her symptoms include swollen belly (which gets tapped every other week or 2) water on brain, confusion/slow slurred speech when water on brain, enlarged spleen, kidneys now effected, open itchy sores, off balance, days & nights flipflopped, sleeps alot, falls down, etc shes been in this l ingering state for several months now. anyone with a similar experience? i assume its towards the end. how much longer can this last. so sad to watch. shes accepted her death and so have I. we just sit and watch.

[sadderthansad]

I am reaching out as I posted a similar post on march 21 about my Mom. Similar, she has been in the hospital for 6 weeks, some good days, some bad. Drained every 3 weeks also, no sores, but in and out of confusion. My dad is there every day, and the siblings have created a schedule so someone is always around at meal times, although on a good day she will take a few spoons of soup or hot cereal, and we are ecstatic.She throws up alot. Can your mom eat, and is she at home. we have been told by the doctors that her vitals are all pretty good, but may not live more than 3 months.Extremely difficult to watch. I think every case is unique to a certain extent. I read some horrible things on this site about the final days, and relayed these to our doctor. he had an explanation for what I read, and said that those people may have had certain conditions my mom does not, and not to assume her ending would be the same. I want to read, but I don't want to know.   Sadderthansad

[orphanannie26]

hi, thank you for reaching out. ive been hoping someone in a similar situation would respond. no one in my immediate family or friends have been through liver failure. Ive been reading posts and its not pretty. as i see with my mom its slow uncomfortable &........ not pretty. I empathize with what you're going through. i agree it is not easy to watch. It messes with my heart, my emotions, my head. I cry. I think "how much longer can this go on?" and "IDK how much longer I can watch"

my mom is home. her husband cares for her 24/7 since she needs 24/7 supervision.  shes been in & out of  the hospital over the past 2 years with hep c flare ups and now the liver failure. one stay was a full month last year, the other stays were for a few days. she requests they send her home because they cannot cure her, only keep her comfortable. she'd rather be at home because that where she is comfortable and has her cat. since shes been in this lingering state for several months. her husband is aware when she needs to be "tapped". when he notices this he contacts her doctor. its easy for him to tell because she gets so bloated & confused. the confusion goes away when shes tapped and levels of toxins go down. now my mom doesnt want to go to the hospital. its more difficult for her to travel anywhere because he has no balance, shes too tired, and its too much for her. we may have hospice come in.

does your mom feel ok staying at the hospital? if her vitals are ok and they are not "curing" her just keeping her comfortable would it be easier and more comfortable to have her home?

she does eat but mainly soups. she has not had the vomiting that I know of. she either eats light or not at all. shes on a liver friendly diet of low sodium, fruits, veggies, no red meat but high protein.

her kidneys are now effected and her spleen is now enlarged (does your mother have these later symptoms? they are new for my mom) I heard once it effects the kidneys the end is near. As far as the "end" I think they slip into a coma. My mom has had her throat "banded" due to the bleeding in her veins from pressure, but this was done 3 years ago.

does your mom have the hep c or another cause of cirrhosis?

annie

[orphanannie26]

i just went to your profile to find your march 21st posting. im so sorry about your mother. my mom doesnt have the heart issues or internal bleeding. my mom also is in her 50's but do keep in touch...... any support (even connection w ill mothers) is good!

[jr1963]

hi, i am sorry about you mom,i to have endstage liver disease,can't sleep at nite, swollen legs, lower abd pain cause no blood going in to gut.very low blood platlets, wbc is 0, enlarged spleen.portal vien hypertension, toxins in my system.only thing  for me is a liver transplant but very slim. why didn't dr do a liver transplant?my prayers go out your mom,you and dad/family. may godbless you and keep you.I will pray for your mom and your family plz keep ing touch. jr1963

[orphanannie26]

thank you so much for reaching out. shes been on a transplant list for the past  few years but she still has thousands ahead of her. She goes through STrong Hospital in Rochester NY. Plus her body wouldnt be able to handle the transplant at this point. Her body is too fragile. Im sorry you're going through this as well. Do you have the ascities????? If too personal to answer I understand. Please keep in touch.