Opal slipping away

I will call this female resident Opal. Her skin is that color, very white and very pale. When she came here a couple of months ago, it looked like she had a full head of hair. One of our aides gave her a shower and was combing her hair. She also cut her fingernails which must've been overly long.

The next day Opal just sat without hardly moving. She looked like she had been left in bed in a nursing home, without care, for quite a long time. I don't know if that's what happened. But that's what she looked like. Opal was not here very long when she was whisked to the ER and admitted to some hospital, maybe locally, I'm not sure. She was gone for maybe a month.

I did not really think she would return. Then, all of a sudden, without much notice, she was back. She was a little more active and could actually feed herself in the dining room. I thought maybe she was on the mend. After her return, I noticed most of her hair is very thin. The remaining hair is combed over the large bald spots she has. For a while there she was talking a bit. The aides talk to her giving her care, even if she does not answer. I'm sure they want to let her know what they're doing.

But Opal's ability to feed herself didn't last long – perhaps a week to ten days. Then she started to slow down. She did everything slower, hardly talked, and hardly moved.

It's almost painful watching her. Her feet are hanging free from her wheelchair at angles. I wonder how they can be comfortable that way.

Last week she could feed herself a bit and then she was assisted with the rest of her meal. This week she sits silent, eyes mostly closed, and in the last few days drool hangs from her mouth and chin. It is devastating to watch. I almost feel like I want to run from her. I wonder if whatever has gotten hold of her might reach out and grab hold of me and pull me to the place where she is and cause me to be immobile.

If I were the nurse, I would want to send her out to the hospital to find out what's going on. But perhaps, they already know what's going on.

Opal is caught somewhere in the life that we may experience a bit of when we're asleep. During sleep, we are helpless to stop sleeping and wake only when our brain allows us to.

I just wonder if there's any way to help Opal.