Donna,
We were lucky, I know. People really wanted to come and see my mom, but probably almost just as bad, I had to look at her sisters, family and friends and tell them that she did not want to see them. My mom was pretty negative through the whole thing, and I know when I read your posts I was almost jealous of you that your mom was still interacting so much with you. I honestly called my mom's answering machine one day to hear her voice, since she refused to even try talking after her trache was put in.

Remeber all of those people who said in the beginning "if there is anything I can do to help...", well call them ALL. I am someone who does not like to ask for anything, but my sister adopted the motto, "be careful what you offer" and has taken people up on EVERYTHING. In short, I guess you will only get what you ask for, and you need to ask for help. We have been going through this with our moms for almost the same amount of time. You need a break or it is just going to be more stressful for you both. I am sure everything will get better and think that as soon as the trache comes out your mom will start to get back to herself again. Take care of yourself - the last thing you need is to get sick again.

Amy