Hi, Please bear with me, I'm new to this in every sense.
Mum was diagnosed with Alzheimer's last Tuesday. She's 86 & was fine up to a fall and bleed on the brain 6 months ago. Her memory problems & confusion have only been apparent since, & immediately so. The doctor said the brain injury isn't the cause of the problems but may have speeded up the Alzheimer's. She was prescribed Aricept which arrived Saturday, but now she says she doesn't think she wants to take it. Reasonably she says that not being able to remember ever living in her current home where she's been for 50 years or thinking I'm someone else, even after I told her who I was, doesn't worry her. It's what happens when you get old. It doesn't affect her day to day life, she has carers twice a day for meds & a meal. By and large she's content; when told it could help get some of her memory back she says she's not bothered.
The good thing about what happened to Mum was that she missed the gradual decline, knowing something was wrong, so no distress. I don't know if anyone has had any experience, but if she got some memory back with the Aricept, might the losing of it again be distressing or is that not how it works?
Equally, I'm guessing that if she decides now she doesn't want it, there aren't any second chances. In a short while she probably will have no idea/forgotten any medication was offered & is likely to deny she made a choice.
Of course I'd love my Mum back, if only for a few months, but that's selfish. I totally see what she is saying about not wanting to bother, plus I don't want to do anything to worry, upset or distress her. But equally I don't want to deny her something that might be good & make her feel like she used to, by helping her make a decision she would regret.
I know she's asked me what I would do & I could persuade her; I'm horribly aware of that & am not sure what to do.
Any thoughts or advice would be gratefully listened to...or even just to say 'yep, welcome to our world!'
Mum was diagnosed with Alzheimer's last Tuesday. She's 86 & was fine up to a fall and bleed on the brain 6 months ago. Her memory problems & confusion have only been apparent since, & immediately so. The doctor said the brain injury isn't the cause of the problems but may have speeded up the Alzheimer's. She was prescribed Aricept which arrived Saturday, but now she says she doesn't think she wants to take it. Reasonably she says that not being able to remember ever living in her current home where she's been for 50 years or thinking I'm someone else, even after I told her who I was, doesn't worry her. It's what happens when you get old. It doesn't affect her day to day life, she has carers twice a day for meds & a meal. By and large she's content; when told it could help get some of her memory back she says she's not bothered.
The good thing about what happened to Mum was that she missed the gradual decline, knowing something was wrong, so no distress. I don't know if anyone has had any experience, but if she got some memory back with the Aricept, might the losing of it again be distressing or is that not how it works?
Equally, I'm guessing that if she decides now she doesn't want it, there aren't any second chances. In a short while she probably will have no idea/forgotten any medication was offered & is likely to deny she made a choice.
Of course I'd love my Mum back, if only for a few months, but that's selfish. I totally see what she is saying about not wanting to bother, plus I don't want to do anything to worry, upset or distress her. But equally I don't want to deny her something that might be good & make her feel like she used to, by helping her make a decision she would regret.
I know she's asked me what I would do & I could persuade her; I'm horribly aware of that & am not sure what to do.
Any thoughts or advice would be gratefully listened to...or even just to say 'yep, welcome to our world!'