A sad, terrifying disease

My mom has Alzheimer's.  It is getting really bad.  She will no longer sleep through the night, but takes naps throughout the day and night and needs constant supervision.  She can no longer communicate.  She walks hunched over and is bad about running into things.  She needs help doing everything, getting dressed, eating, going to the bathroom, brushing her hair.  She sniffles and cries on an off almost every waking moment.  I don't know how Sid has stayed sane being her full time care giver for more than a year and a half.  Fortunately, she hasn't been this bad for very long.  But what happens next?  I think she has become more than one person can handle.  Sid is laid up after having surgery over the weekend to remove his appendix.  My mom's sister and I are doing our best to take care of her, but I feel way over my head.  And what happens when we leave?  I have to go back to work somewhere along the line.  And Jo has effectively abandoned Glenn and their menagerie of critters (fortunately, they can be self-sufficient without her and won't waste away to nothing).  Sid is very reluctant to the idea of placing mom somewhere.  Although I think the time has come.  But he has to be the one making the decision.  We did visit two memory care units today. Staff from one of them is coming in the morning to do an evaluation with regards to whether they could accept her.  Right now they have no space available, but Heather did say if we felt pressed for some alternative, she would do her best to help us find a place for her until Heather's facility had room.  Heather also talked about respite care, where mom might could be placed for a few weeks to give Sid a chance to recover.  I wish he'd consider this as a serious option.  I think he desperately needs a break beyond time to recover from surgery.  But again, I can't make decisions for him.  Only offer my opinion and my thought process behind it.  

Comments

  1. I am so sorry to hear about your poor mum. What a terrible thing to happen to her and such a hard thing for you and your family to cope with. Sending hugs.
    Lynne x

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