Hi,
My Mum has recently been diagnosed with dementia, she is only 56 years old, so it is quite hard to come to terms with at the moment. As a family we knew that something wasn't right with her for a while and we were encouraging her to go and see the doctor which she did but it was never taken seriously (they blamed it on menopause, stress etc) until one day she couldn't find her way to the doctors after going there for over 20 years. From her first visit to the hospital, it took approximately 12 months to get an official diagnosis, two months after that she was finally administered with medication. I feel that we have been failed by the NHS particularly because of the way she is at the moment.
There are so many questions that we still want answering, but have not been given the opportunity to ask. I have read various things on the internet about the stages of dementia and I can't determine what stage my Mum might be at. Her short term memory is near enough non-existent, she is obsessed with carrying around her keys and handbag (she never lets go of them even when she is just sitting in the house), she has developed a real anxiety of being left on her own therefore if there is ever a time where she is in the house on her own she tries to get out. However, once she gets to the next door neighbours house she is lost. She is becoming increasingly paranoid in thinking that people are being nasty to her. She has put on some weight but I think that is due to the fact that she does not go out anymore as she was very active up until 18 months ago when she started getting confused as to where she was. She often loses her train of thought when speaking and is therefore unable to finish a sentence and very repetitive in things that she does say.
It is so stressful on the family, trying to find someone to look after her on a daily basis and then worrying about whether or not she is ok where she is or who is with her knowing that she is getting paranoid about what people think of her. My dad is thinking of quitting his job in order to look after her full time but I am not sure of the benefits that they are entitled to claim other than DLA and Carers Allowance.
Jen
My Mum has recently been diagnosed with dementia, she is only 56 years old, so it is quite hard to come to terms with at the moment. As a family we knew that something wasn't right with her for a while and we were encouraging her to go and see the doctor which she did but it was never taken seriously (they blamed it on menopause, stress etc) until one day she couldn't find her way to the doctors after going there for over 20 years. From her first visit to the hospital, it took approximately 12 months to get an official diagnosis, two months after that she was finally administered with medication. I feel that we have been failed by the NHS particularly because of the way she is at the moment.
There are so many questions that we still want answering, but have not been given the opportunity to ask. I have read various things on the internet about the stages of dementia and I can't determine what stage my Mum might be at. Her short term memory is near enough non-existent, she is obsessed with carrying around her keys and handbag (she never lets go of them even when she is just sitting in the house), she has developed a real anxiety of being left on her own therefore if there is ever a time where she is in the house on her own she tries to get out. However, once she gets to the next door neighbours house she is lost. She is becoming increasingly paranoid in thinking that people are being nasty to her. She has put on some weight but I think that is due to the fact that she does not go out anymore as she was very active up until 18 months ago when she started getting confused as to where she was. She often loses her train of thought when speaking and is therefore unable to finish a sentence and very repetitive in things that she does say.
It is so stressful on the family, trying to find someone to look after her on a daily basis and then worrying about whether or not she is ok where she is or who is with her knowing that she is getting paranoid about what people think of her. My dad is thinking of quitting his job in order to look after her full time but I am not sure of the benefits that they are entitled to claim other than DLA and Carers Allowance.
Jen
