It is 2:30 and I have spent the entire day doing paperwork for mom & dad. Call about prescriptions. Talk to the doctor. Fix IRIS time sheet for caregiver. Call 3 places about personal care funding. Deposit money in checking. Mail check stubs to caregivers. Pick up prescriptions. Talk to social work and caregivers. These are little jobs that consume a lot of time. At least I am blessed to have the day to do it. Now I have a bucket of apples that will keep waiting & maybe go to the deer. One thing Alzheimer's teaches the caregiver is YOU CAN'T DO IT ALL, so apples must wait.
Mom's brother Steve came to visit today. A very nice thing to do, since I can't imagine taking mom on that long drive to see him. She seems more confused lately & asks lots of questions when completing simple tasks. Dad is hanging in there but I am worried about his ability to handle the situation & then there are the cows. Soon they will be sold & that will be a very sad time for us. We will continue to take it a day an hour at a time & see where this journey is taking us.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Monday, October 5, 2009
Forgetting Fall Days
The days, weeks and months seem to be flying by. Mom is loving the beautiful colors of the leaves. The other day when I took her to a dentist appt. She kept repeating, "Look at that! Look at that!" Over and over again. She has also mentioned that she has never seen the leaves look colorful. It is as if she has forgotten the fall days. She is awed by trees. She often makes remarks about their size and now about their color. She also seems to be a little afraid that tall trees could fall randomly and comments, "Look how big that tree is."
Mom was a little rough on one of the caregivers so they said they thought it was best if they didn't come back for awhile. They felt that mom was being upset too much by their presence. This is very sad because Dawn is a very loving, easy going person & a mighty good cook. Dad especially enjoyed her company & food. That probably led mom to not want her in the house. We are blessed with wonderful caregivers so one of them picked up Dawn's Fridays & for now I am doing Wednesdays. That has become mom's bath days. Not sure how long this schedule will last but for now it is o.k. When mom has had dentist appts it has been an opportunity for the caregivers to clean the house & throw out old food. I am so thankful to have help with this responsibility.
During the past month, it seems mom's memory has really been slipping. She never really seems to know who I am. She does call me by name but then often questions me if she is correct. She makes occasional statements about the kids being in school & wonders when they will come home. When my brother Geno called she talked to him & then hung up the phone and said, "Who is Geno?" I showed her the picture of us six kids but I really don't think it's there anymore. She says, "yep" really fast when I ask about her understanding. It seems like a generic response just to be agreeable. How awful it must feel to have lost what once filled your thoughts.
Mom has also been waking up in the night. Dad says that about 11 o'clock she thinks she should get dressed. I have told him to give her the sleeping medicine but as of yet, he doesn't think it is necessary. I am concerned about dad because he is fighting a cold, seems more tired & quiet than usual.
Mom has also been confused with making coffee. She will put the pot of water below instead of pouring it through the maker & her dish water coffee has turned into some mighty thick cowboy coffee. One day she made sugar water in a cup and then dumped it into the whole pot of coffee. I was glad I had already taken out my coffee.
Mom was a little rough on one of the caregivers so they said they thought it was best if they didn't come back for awhile. They felt that mom was being upset too much by their presence. This is very sad because Dawn is a very loving, easy going person & a mighty good cook. Dad especially enjoyed her company & food. That probably led mom to not want her in the house. We are blessed with wonderful caregivers so one of them picked up Dawn's Fridays & for now I am doing Wednesdays. That has become mom's bath days. Not sure how long this schedule will last but for now it is o.k. When mom has had dentist appts it has been an opportunity for the caregivers to clean the house & throw out old food. I am so thankful to have help with this responsibility.
During the past month, it seems mom's memory has really been slipping. She never really seems to know who I am. She does call me by name but then often questions me if she is correct. She makes occasional statements about the kids being in school & wonders when they will come home. When my brother Geno called she talked to him & then hung up the phone and said, "Who is Geno?" I showed her the picture of us six kids but I really don't think it's there anymore. She says, "yep" really fast when I ask about her understanding. It seems like a generic response just to be agreeable. How awful it must feel to have lost what once filled your thoughts.
Mom has also been waking up in the night. Dad says that about 11 o'clock she thinks she should get dressed. I have told him to give her the sleeping medicine but as of yet, he doesn't think it is necessary. I am concerned about dad because he is fighting a cold, seems more tired & quiet than usual.
Mom has also been confused with making coffee. She will put the pot of water below instead of pouring it through the maker & her dish water coffee has turned into some mighty thick cowboy coffee. One day she made sugar water in a cup and then dumped it into the whole pot of coffee. I was glad I had already taken out my coffee.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)