My Father Does Not Drink Water

Yesterday evening, my mother called me.

She said that my father had been vomiting repeatedly since the morning.

He had vomited once in the morning, but the nausea had not gone away, and he kept trying to vomit.

However, since he had eaten nothing all day, there was nothing left to bring up.

Worried, my sister said that he should be taken to the hospital that same day, so he went there in the evening.

I happened to have some time, so I drove to my parents’ home in Kanagawa to see how he was doing.

I thought he might be able to eat mizutaki, so I bought plenty of vegetables on the way.

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At the hospital, he was given an IV drip for about an hour.

The drip also contained medication to suppress the nausea, and apparently he began to feel somewhat better.

The diagnosis was dehydration.

I have told my father many times that he needs to drink more water.

But when I asked my mother, she said that he hardly ever drinks any.

He does not have much of an appetite either, so he does not eat very much.

He does not drink water.

He barely eats.

And yet he drinks alcohol and smokes cigarettes.

It would hardly be surprising if something went wrong with his health.

He is not someone who readily listens to other people.

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Since oral rehydration solution is recommended for dehydration, I bought six 500-milliliter bottles.

I looked it up and found that a similar solution could also be made by adding measured amounts of sugar and salt to water.

I wrote the amounts down on a piece of paper and gave it to my father, telling him to make it himself once the bottles I had bought were gone.

Not eating is also worrying, but I think the greater problem is that he hardly drinks any water at all.

As people grow older, they may become less aware of thirst even when their bodies need fluids.

Even so, despite repeatedly telling him to drink the oral rehydration solution, my father took only one or two sips.

I told him to stop drinking alcohol for at least three days, but I am not sure whether he will actually do so.

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If possible, I want my father to remain healthy as he grows older.

I also worry about my mother being left alone, so I hope the two of them can stay well together for as long as possible.

When my father vomits repeatedly, as he did yesterday, my sister and I rush to their home.

And once again, we tell him to drink water.

Perhaps that is about all a family can do.