Alzheimer's Community

Congratulation to all for being "Friends" for over a year now!

Best wishes to you all,

Byroney

Good morning all....Wow.. has it been over a year already? Thank you Byroney for switching us to December. Darlene...Good to hear from you...So sorry to hear about your problems with MIL. Did you know there are 2 full moons this month? Also sorry to hear that you are sick. It sure does make it harder when MIL won't let you sleep so you can get better. All I can say is "hang in there" like we are all doing.....Mom is doing ok so far. Almost done with my second quilt, just have to put on the ruffle. 2 down 3 to go....LOL! Hope every is doing ok and has a good day! Cindy

Hi everyone...WOW! Can't believe it's been a year. Mom fell yesterday and broke her right hip. I tried to keep her from going down, but I couldn't hang on to her. I'm staying at the hospital during the day and coming home at night. I can't stay up there day and night, my family needs me too. So I'm kinda between a rock and a hard place. I came today and my nephew texted me and wanted to know where I was at. I told me at home. I asked where he was at and he said trying to keep granny in the bed. He was at the hospital and mom was acting up. I thought now you'll see what I go through. I told him to ask the nurse and she what she could do. Then I asked Is someone going to have to stay at night? He said the nurse said it would be a good idea. You know what that means??? I'll be up there day and night. He's staying with her tonight. Don't get me wrong. I love my mom, but I'm tired and need a break,rest and some much needed ME time. I had a major meltdown when I found out what was going on at the hospital. My brother in Mississippi called and I let loose again. I have no idea what to do. It may be one day next week till she can have surgery. She's on Plavix. I'll just have to take one day at a time. 2 FULL MOONS this month. GREAT!!!! I noticed while we were in the ER waiting on a room, they begin to get busy. Now I know why. Hope everyone is doing good and things are going well with your loved ones. PRAYERS,HUGS,& LOVE to ALL!!!!!!!!!! Jaye

Good morning everyone.....Jaye.... I'm so sorry to hear about your mom. When my mom was in the hospital 2 weeks ago I thought I could get a break.....WRONG! I was exhausted from running back and forth to the hospital. I didn't spend much time at home so there was no break. She was there for almost 2 weeks. I was really glad when she came home. With a broken hip it may be a while before she is able to come home. She may have to go to rehab for a while. My prayers are with you Jaye........Darlene.....Hope you are feeling better Hope everyone else is doing ok. Thank goodness nothing to report here.....Cindy

Hi, everyone. This is my first post. I moved in with my Mom two years ago when we first found out she had Alzheimer's. We're thinking we'll have to move her to a residential care facility now because it's getting to be more than we can cope with. She fell three times in the last three weeks; she sits down without looking to see if there's something behind her to sit down on. She had stitches in her arm in the emergency room on Sunday. The doctor started her on Celexa three days ago as an antidepressant; she was a zombie yesterday. Maybe the dose is too high. The Residential care facility we found is the sister facility to the one they found in the movie "Complaints of a Dutiful Daughter" (we looked it up after seeing the movie; great movie). She might actually be happier there, but I'm crying every day thinking about moving her there. She's lived in this house for over 55 years. I'll be going there every morning and night and probably doing her exercises with her there every day so it will be me living there during the day, but not sleeping there at night. And I know she'll be more confused there. I just don't know if they'll be able to motivate her to do things besides eat, sleep, and coerce her to exercise (which I do every day). We hope she'll interact with other people more and do some activities, and regain some quality of life. Okay, I guess I'm done venting now. At least she didn't break any bones when she fell. I'm so sorry to hear about your Mom's broken hip. My Mom has osteoporosis and I worry about that all the time. Subhana in San Mateo

Hi Subhana....Welcome to the board. First of all I am no Dr but as I understand antidepressants are dangerous for someone with AD. My mom who is 94 has lived with me for almost 5 years now. She was diognosed with AD about 4 years ago. Dr put her on Aricept and it has helped alot. It slows down the progression. Ask her Dr. My mom has also fell a number of times, but thank goodness no broken bones just bad bruises. You need to do what you think is best for her. They get very confused when you take them out of their comfort zone. Jaye.....How is mom doing? Darlene....How are you doing? Feeling better I hope Marla.....How are you and hubby? Haven't heard from you in a while Kathy.....Are you hanging in there? Suezee....How are the plans going? I know you are busy but you always find time to pop in Hope everyone has a good day.....Cindy

Good morning,

I am new to this. My brother is an Alzheimer's patient. He will be 58 in a few weeks. Recently, he has taken a severe turn for the worst. He is now in a phyciatric ward and has hallucenations and is totally out of it. He started with anxiety attacks at night and has progressed to the point were his wife can no longer control him.

Can anybody shed light on this? I don't know if this is a phase or are the drugs causing this.

Thanks for your help. Please excuse my clumsiness as I am new to this board.

Good Morning,

I'm not sure how this works, but I thought I would check it out. For a while now my grandmother has displying signs of memory loss, but it seems to be getting worse. The entire family has been chalking it up to age, but she's only in her early 70's. It's incredibly hard to see her struggle with this. She gets so upset when she forgets things. I give my grandfather so much credit for being so supportive and patient. I'm curious if anyone has any suggestions on books I can look into or ways that she may be able to keep her mind sharp. Please let me know if you know of anything that might be helpful.

Thank you so very much and God Bless!

Hello! I'm new to this.. It's hard for me to be around my grandmother knowing what's happening to her when she doesn't. Here's a question that I 've had for a while: Have the looked at the chemicals in cedar chips or moth balls? My grandmother always used this in her closets or in her vaccumin cleaner.

Hi everyone, been busy finishing up some loose ends that mom wanted done. Jaye so sorry to hear your mom broke her hip. I know how tiring going back and forth to the hospital can be so make sure you get your rest and much needed me time, don't want to end up in bed next to mom in the hospital. Cindy how's things with you and mom and how is the quilting coming? Darlene what have you and MIL been up to and how is she doing? Dani hope all is well with you and mom, hate to think of 2 full moons this month its bad enough with one.

Kathy how are you holding up with son so far away, remember he is in God's hands and who better to keep him safe. He is going to get a good taste of Chicago weather in the next few days the windy city will hold up to its name so batten down the hatches the wind is on its way and they are close to the lake where that north wind blows. He will soon know about our Midwest winters, Me, I'm not a winter person give me the warm sun.lol Suezee have you finished with your Christmas decorating?

I noticed we have some newbies on the boards, welcome and I hope we can answer some of your questions and the ladies here are a wonderful group who are here for each other. Alz, can be very stressful for the caregivers and being able to talk with someone who knows what your going through is a blessing. The best thing I can tell you is to contact Alz.org ont the internet as they can link you with your local Alz. group who have answers to many of your questions. As for nursing homes you might be surprised at how well they do. I had to finally put my mom in a nursing home that had a Alz. unit and was surprised how well she did. Two weeks ago she passed away after 3 years and I must say they treated her wonderful. My husband is know in his 5th. year of Alz. and is still home with me, there are good days and bad, unfortunately the bad are starting to come more often. So cherish you good memories and enjoy these times. We are very good at listening even if you just want to vent so I hope you will stay with us and come to the boards often. We are here for each other. May God bless you and your loved ones and your in my prayers

Marla

Good morning everyone....Marla... was good to hear from you and also good you had nothing major to report.... Jaye.....How are you and mom doing? ......Kathy.....Marla was right about your son seeing Chicago weather. The last 2 days we had snow with a bigger storm coming today with high winds. How are you doing?....Dani....Haven't heard from you in a while..everything ok?.....Darlene....Hope everything is going well with you.....Suezee....Hope things are going good with you.....Everything here is good so far. Mom has been really good lately. Finished 3 quilts 2 to go It is 7:30 am and snow and winds are starting ....Hope everyone has a good day.....Cindy

Since Holiday Madness has landed and there are less than a dozen posts, I'm going to go ahead and leave this thread live and not make a second one.

I wish everyone joy and happiness and a wonderful New Year!

Byroney

Hi everyone, everybody must be busy with Christmas as the boards have been quiet. Hubby has been pretty good except for a bad Thursday and Friday, but we got through it. Cindy how's mom and the quilting going? Jaye how is your mom doing and have you found out when she will get her pacemaker put in? Darlene and Dani hope all is well with your loved ones and your in the Christmas spirit. Suezee have you finished the holiday decorating and shopping. Thanks for the swan I love it, if you have anymore send them.

May God bless you all and your loved ones and you are in my prayers. Have a great week, Marla

Hi Everyone!

Sorry I haven't been on the board much. Times are busy right now. Between Christmas stuff and wedding stuff, I feel like I have no control! Jaye, I hope you get some of that much needed "me" time while your mom is hospitalized. Will she be going to a nursing home for physical therapy for awhile? When Mom broke her leg, they put a pin in it and she was in PT at a nursing home for 3 weeks. She never was able to walk without her walker after that. Cindy, I can't believe you have 3 quilts done already! I suppose quilting is a great way to work off frustrations. Wish I knew how. My fingers aren't working as well anymore. Cold weather equals artheritis! Ouch! Marla, I'm sorry Hubby is having some bad episodes, but we all know that can happen. Hang in there Marla. And keep on farming on FB. It does help to distract your mind from some of the issues you're having with him. Darlene, how are things going with your MIL? She still giving you a rough time? Or has she eased up a bit? We all face these ups and downs and it's hard when you never know what to expect! Kathy, how are things going with your MIL? I saw her pictures on FB...the whole family in fact. Cool how I put names and faces together now. Is you MIL still running with her partner in crime in the nursing home? LOL I can picture it now! Pity the poor staff that have to put up with it too. Welcome NEWBIES! Cmc...in answer to your question, check with thee local Alzheimer's Assn in your area and learn everything you can about AD. I have heard, if the AD patient is able, word puzzles, sudukos, and even playing bingo is helpful and can keep their minds more agile. There are alot of websites out there that address AD issues. Educate yourself! Emg...How old is your Grandma? Has she seen her doctor lately? If not, it wouldn't hurt to talk her into going. You can always ask her doc about mothballs and cedar chips. I've never heard of it causing dementia but I'm not a doctor. You can talk her her doc and tell him/her your concerns. They may not be able to tell you about her specifically, unless you have durable Power of Attny over her. But at least you can voice your concerns. Plus, you should educate yourself about AD. Like I told Cmc, check with the Alz Assn in your area and ask for info. They have tons of stuff they can send you. You can also ask them questions. Randy......Your bro could be having problems due to the meds that he's on. Of course AD can also be the culprit. Check with his doc and make a list of questions if you need to. If his doc won't help, contact the Alz. Assn. I can't tell you how helpful they were when Mom was alive and we wre caring for her. Subhana......Don't feel guilty! Your mom is in a place that can care for her. When it gets to the point where you are unable to care for a person at home, due to their medical needs or because they are out of control, then it's time for the AD patient to go to a facility that can care for them. Too many caregivers try to care for their loved ones too long and the caregiver is the one that ends up with poor health or mental breakdowns or even dead. Yes, caregiver's lifespan is shortened because they are caregivers, from what some studies say. So visit often, and enjoy her good times. Show her lots of love and support.

OK...That was long! Yes, most of my decorations are up...except the tree. My daughter's fiance got to cut a live tree for the first time ever! They don't do that in Oklahoma. And us girls got to look at wedding dresses this weekend! Hand me my hanky! It was so cool!

Take care of yourselves and I'll keep you all updated!

Suezee