I am very low to no contact with my dad I haven’t seen him for two years but have sporadic phone contact with him. We don’t live in the same county so not nearby and he is 70. He has had a number of health issues related to breathing and some years ago diagnosed with COPD but managed his daily life as usual.
I spoke with him yesterday and he sounded awful. His voice was very hoarse, he could barely talk was very breathless and kept stuttering. He is having a lot of falls from passing out and said he can no longer walk to the shops a walk that used to take 5 minutes would now take him 45 as he has to use a stick and take regular breaks so no longer goes to the shops. He doesn’t know why he is passing out or if that is linked to the copd but said he is under investigations. He used to have an inhaler to administer himself but said he now has a nurse come out once a day to administer a inhaler via a spacer and has a whole host of tablets that he has to take - I don’t know what these are and he said he didn’t know what they are of what they are for. He has no appetite and said he has gone from 14 stone to around 9 stone in weight.
He is also an alcoholic and I suspect he had been drinking. He is under adult social care and I’ve kept my distance from it all as don’t want caring responsibility. We have a long troubled relationship hence no to low contact.
I don’t want to re-involve myself deeply or end up in a caring role, but I also don’t want to be blindsided if something happens. I’m trying to understand what stage he might be at and what the likely progression could be, so I can decide whether a visit is necessary or if there’s anything I should be preparing for practically or emotionally. Any insight from people with experience of similar situations especially around COPD, unexplained blackouts, extreme weight loss, and heavy drinking would be really appreciated.