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Tuesday, December, 02, 2008

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whattodo
whattodo
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I have been married 20 years this June (2008).  I have a son...

05/27/08
whattodo
Category:CaregivingAlzheimer's

How can I know when it's time to find a home for my mom?

I figure my mom is in the last of the middle stage of Alzheimer's.  She also can't see as she has a detached retina and Macular Degeneration.  She can walk, but I have to hold her hand or she thinks she will fall.  She still eats but doesn't seem to like anything with texture.  She will spit stuff out now so it is mostly soup and ice cream.  She can still talk but is beginning to use the wrong words.  She can use the bathroom but I have to show her where it is and how to use it.  She knows me as her caregiver but she doesn't realize I'm her daughter.  My dad died last December 2007 and I've had mom 24/7 since.  I have a brother in the hospital recoverig from brain surgery (6 months now) and I have a brother who is an alcoholic, doesn't come around much and causes problems when he does.  I had to call the police on him once as he was stealing from my mom and he gets very mad and scary when he is drinking.  Now when he talks to mom on the phone he tells her how evil I am.  She won't remember but it does agitate her at the time.  I don't want to keep him from his mother but I don't trust him.  So, I have her all the time.  I hired a lady to stay with her 4 hours/day 2 days/week but then my brother caused problems and I was afraid to leave the lady there with my mom.  So, I let her go after just one week.  My problem is that I have a 12 year old daughter and a 17 year old son.  I try to stay at mom's half the time and bring her to my house half the time.  She does not know how to find the bathroom in the night and we have had some awful accidents around the house so in January I started sleeping in my daughter's room with my mom and my daughter sleeps on the couch.  I haven't spent a whole night with my husband since then.  I love mom so much and I don't want to put her in a home but I'm barely handling all this anymore.  I feel like an awful daughter just thinking about putting her somewhere else.  Plus, she doesn't know me as her daughter anymore, all I have is her trust because I'm her caregiver.  I know as soon as I put her somewhere, I will lose the only thing I have left.  I'm afraid I'll be just another stranger if I'm not the one taking care of her.  I still grieve my dad, I'm grieving my mom, my kids want me home when I"m at mom's house, I feel I"m being pulled in every which way and I don't think I can handle it anymore.  I don't mean to make this all about 'me', I hope that's not how this sounds.  I just want to do the right thing.  Any advise?

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Answers (2)
ninamarczynski
ninamarczynski
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My husband and I are taking care of my father-in-law who has...

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

The experts here know more information and they can help you more. But I would say the rule is when you cannot take it anymore. My father-in-law has Alzheimer's and he has 24 hours home care. Basically we all wish them to stay home for being safe and cozy/personal. But at some point, they would have to go to a home. Our home care nurse said one day my father-in-law will go to a home if he becomes violent or unruly. When caregivers cannot handle it, it is time to send them to a nursing home.

When it is not safe for them to be at home, it is also time to send them to a nursing home for more medical care attention and safety.

Now my husband has a health issue to attend to. It will depend on how good/bad my hubby's shape is. If we are not feeling well, we would have to send his Dad to a nursing home.

You get my point.

 

Nina 

Carol Bradley Bursack
Carol Bradley Bursack
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Author and Eldercare Columnist

Elder care columnist, author and speaker Carol Bradley Bursack...

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

It sounds like it's time to get your mom and you the help needed, which means probably, a nursing home. Would your mom - the mom she was before Alzheimer's - want you not have time for your children and perhaps endanger your marriage because of her illness? I doubt it. I often had to think, "What would Mom have wanted me to do when she was still herself?" It helped me make choices.

 

I you find a good nursing home, your mom will have better care - no one person can do it all, not even you. You have to sleep. You have to eat. What if you get sick -really sick? Then what would your mom do? Your kids? Your husband.

 

You are not "giving up" on your mom by putting her in the care of experts. Visit as often as you can. She will adjust and may even make friends, if she is still capable of that. She will likely enjoy seeing people her own age. She might even have some fun.

 

Please do get help for the sake of all of you. You've done so much. Now it's time for assistance.

 

Bless you for being such a loving daughter.

Carol

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