Severe Heart Failure

[Newheys]

I’m new to this forum and am looking for advice on what to expect . My mum has severe heart failure and is on oxygen . The water fluid in her body is building up and the diuretics are not working . I’m assuming this is now really bad but don’t know what comes next . The doctor will review next week so not looking for medical advice just what to expect as treatment - hospital ? Intravenous drugs ? Or is prognosis really bad

[Happyrosie]

I’m sure this is hard for you, and to know what to expect. You might find some help from the cardia nurses in British heart foundation? Go to her website and find their helpline today - they are not open at weekends.

[Lezzers]

I'm very sorry to hear about your mum, my husband has severe heart failure so I now how worrying it is. When diuretics are not removing the fluid or is not removing it fast enough then generally you're given a diuretic intravenously at the hospital, but as we often say in this group, everyone is different.

If your mum has a HF specialist nurse then I would speak to them about it or her GP. Depending on how severe the fluid retention is she may need medical attention before next week.

Good luck 🤞

[Newheys in reply to Lezzers]

Thanks , the nurses have now arranged for a visit to hospital for IV diuretics . As we thought .

[DodgyTickerMum]

Sorry to read your Mum is very unwell. I.V Furosemide and a hospital stay is the usual course of action for excessive fluid overload with H.F, if oral meds are no longer effective.

If your Mum is really struggling, I would try and contact the H.F nurses prior to the G.P appointment next week or, if you’re really concerned call 111 (as it’s now the weekend) and ask for urgent advice. It’s better to get it checked than leave it.

See if you can join the Facebook group ‘Pumping Marvellous’ (they also have a website), which is specifically aimed at H.F patients and their carers. It is promoted by the medical community and has lots of useful information on there.

My Dad sadly is now palliative with end stage H.F and the Nurses main objective, is to keep him as comfortable as possible, with his odema at a tolerable level. Albeit, it is a balancing act with the diuretic medication then negatively impacting his kidneys.

I hope you manage to get your Mum seen and that she soon feels a little better. Take care.

[Newheys in reply to DodgyTickerMum]

thank you for your reply . The nurses have been out and we are indeed taking mum to hospital for IV diuretics . They have said it’s palliative end stage care so we will see how this helps 🥲

[DodgyTickerMum]

Bless You. Such a worry for you, but my Dad was referred to the care of the palliative team over a year ago. He’s very much still with us, lives independently - (with an emergency button he’s supposed to wear - but never does…) 🤦🏼‍♀️

All the H.F Nurses can do now is twiddle with his meds, as he’s really not responding to them. We all know he’s sadly on borrowed time, but we try to cherish the time that we have left. We’re currently making tentative Christmas plans, which gives him something to look forward to. That’s all we can do, is take each day as it comes.

Hopefully, once your Mum’s fluid overload has been rectified, her breathing will improve and she’ll feel a lot more comfortable. Hope she gets on ok and you don’t have too long a wait for admission. Take care. ❤️‍🩹

[Newheys]

Thanks - we very much doubt she will make it to Xmas as the doctors have just said her kidneys are failing . She was diagnosed last year November and has been managing until August , now she seems to have fell off a cliff so we are preparing for worse and hoping for the best xx

[DodgyTickerMum in reply to Newheys]

So sorry to hear this. Such a worrying, anxious time. My Dad is in renal failure too. It’s all the diuretics he’s on. We didn’t think he’d be here last Christmas and instead of that, we sadly lost our lovely Mum. They were both deemed palliative within a few days of each other last summer - just 2 weeks after I’d left hospital following open heart surgery. To say it was a tough time would be an understatement, as I was quite unwell post op and the road to recovery has been long - hampered by grief and trying to care for our Dad - whose medical ailments - combined with mine, have become a full time occupation.🤦🏼‍♀️

I really hope you get to Christmas with your Mum. It will give you both a goal to aim for and something for her to look forward to. Take care. ❤️‍🩹

[Newheys]

thank you for taking time to answer I appreciate your kind words