Dealing with dementia/memory loss.

[Detroit_Waves]

She also can't really be left on her own anymore as she keeps falling over, apparently ringing people literally 20 miles away to come and help her up because she can't remember that my sister is in the house, upstairs or in the kitchen.

Its funny you mention the calling thing, as he is going through a phase of ringing people a lot right now, sometimes up to 20 odd times a day, with the same request or topic of conversation.

In my mind, I know its going to get worse. The person I feel most sorry for is my misses Dad. Currently, his Mum has been doing down the dementia road for some while now, and is in a really bad place, and now his brother. I'm not sure i'd be able to deal with that, so its obviously becoming a huge stress on the family. I guess I'm just trying to help out any way I can. Not that there is obviously too much I can help out with in this sort of situation.

I guess the main thing I can do right now, is try and offer to spend some of my free time with him, try and keep him entertained, even if it is just for an hour every other day or so. Try and make his routine less mundane!

 

[ennogs]

As has been said being in a home is the best pace for him. He can have 24 hour care and be safe. Sadly I know from experience he is only going to get worse. The best thing you can do is visit him as often as you can. Let him know you care.

 

[hux]

Have a look at phosphatidyl serine, it's an extract from soya.

Anyway besides reducing cortisol, it's meant to help with dementia/alzheimers.

http://www.naturalnews.com/016646.html

Also anything rich in omega 3's helps, say flaxseed for instance.

 

[-BA-]

Cared for my dad with my mum for 5 years before he passed away 2 years ago this August. He only spent the last 6 weeks of his life in a home so we really did the best we could. His dementia was brought on by a massive heart attack and 'stroke' (we maintain it was oxygen deprivation when they took him off life support, but that's another story).

Things became really tough to deal with over time as he would become more and more repetitive and confused. If there is anything I could recommend it is to try and spread the support out across the family and don't let it fall on just one or two peoples' shoulders. My family unit is very small and with my sister living a long way away, the support fell to just me and mum.

Get in there, do your bit but make sure others do theirs and be firm with them. Try and learn to be patient with him as it is really tough, remain calm as they can become aggressive and will only get more confused if you show anger or stress. Their emotions get all ****** up as they try to convey one thing but actually show another.

With him being in a home, they will probably do nothing more than shove him infront of a tv so perhaps trips to the local park would be really nice. Places where there is plenty to see and enjoy, flowers, colours, etc.

Maybe not the most constructive reply but coping strategies are really important if you want to truly help.

 

[Collider]

My Uncle died last year after 2 years of alzheimers and it really is a very sad thing to go through.

I'd also recommend The alzheimers society, they have worker advice and groups and one of the things my Aunt did was take my Uncle along to a session where they focused on things that had happened a long time ago (music, songs, images) as that is what people in this condition start to remember best.

Though its horrible, the person themselves doesn't really realise what is happening when it gets to the advanced stage, the saddest part for us was when he knew and knew what was in store, which makes me feel like having a bit of a sob even now, which I know seems silly. He did some research and tried to be helpful and that was almost the worst part..though of course after a while it wasn't.

I completely agree on coping strategies because its a condition in which you lose the person and they lose themselves long before they die.

Spend time in the time you have sharing his memories and talking about things that matter to him for you to remember. My Uncle made a scrapbook and diary and the youngest members of the family really appreciate that now he has gone (he had been a primary school teacher and he was the most fun for kids you'd know how to have).