Alzheimer's & Dementia - Anybody involved ?

[dinners]

Hi there.....

Without going into too much detail for now...I just thought I'd ask if anybody has any experience of managing / coping / caring for those with alzheimers ?

I appreciate it may not be something for public discussion but I'd be really keen to know if anybody else is having to deal with it.

No rush - & cheers in advance.....

 

[kevshore]

Hi phil. We are at the early stages with my mother in law being diagnosed.She has had loads of tests and it would appear that she is at a lower level right now.
Its a real learning curve for us at the moment. Not knowing what to expect etc. The book that the Alzheimers society sent is very informative and a little scarey at the same time.
I'll be watching this thread with interest. Hopefully someone who has been there/done that will be able to help us a little.


Kev.

 

[stupar]

My dad has Dementia which stems from his Parkinson's disease. The Dementia has only been present for the last year but sadly his downhill slope is very slippery and has hit him and the rest of the family very hard. He is on copious amounts of medication to treat various aspects of is condition. Although recognition is still present and he can still feed himself and cloth himself, he is not the same person I used to know and frequently has hallucinations. (however I will not let that affect my judgement or the way I care for him).
The major problem we have just now is what was once a calm and pleasent person now needs very little fuel to fire a torrent of anger and abuse. This does not happen to everyone and certainly your personal case may be completely different, however it is worth bearing in mind just in case.
I found the easiest way to accept a condition is face the facts long term and place in your mind what the final outcome will be, its a hard pill to swallow but it will allow you to live each day with the affected person easier than if you were in constant denial, also don't take anything they may say bad about you to heart as half the time they don't even know they are saying it!
There is no cure so things never get better and the key point is to live for every day as it comes.
Dementia plays havoc with the mind therfore there will never be consistency between good days and bad for the affected person.
I hope this throws some light on the matter and I apologise if it sounds doom and gloom.

 

[Nikon Ken]

Hi Phil,

My wife is at the early stages - diagnosed with Mild Cognative Impairment a couple of years ago. They don't like to call it dementia or alzhelmer's at the early stages and especially in someone so young. She is on medication, which they claim slows down the progress for 85%. Day to day she is OK but short term memory is not there and she suffers spacial awareness problems and therefore cannot drive.

I also had the experience of my Father who suffered dementia in his later life. I lived over 200 miles away and my Mother assisted by my Brother bore the brunt of looking after him until he became so bad he had to go into a home for his own safety.

Not a nice disease.

Ken

 

[dinners]

Thanks for the feedback folks.

I'm in work just now but will have a read tonight.