My Grandma is almost 93 and she has undiagnosed dementia. I have an appointment scheduled with a neurologist for dementia screening, but they can't get her in until mid August. The doctor is supposedly really good, she has great online reviews and my mom's boss uses her and says she's really good.
I might be able to get an appointment for June or July with another neurologist, but her online reviews are mediocre. A relative that goes to her also isn't pleased with her but has limited choices in where she can go.
How can I know if Grandma can wait until August for a diagnosis? Will waiting that long make a difference? I don't know if there's any medication that can help her. She may have some depression too, I don't know.
She sleeps all the time. If I didn't get her out of bed, she'd probably never get out. Then after breakfast, she pretty much sleeps until bedtime. I wake her every two hours to use the bathroom and then she gets mad for waking her up. She states that if she had to go to the bathroom she would go, but that's not true. She pees in her diaper instead of getting up to use the toilet. I don't know if she deliberately pees in her diaper or if she no longer has control over her bladder. She was even napping in the waiting room of the doctor's office the other day. Then during the entire exam she was moaning or whatever that obnoxious noise is that she makes.
The one thing that does bother me is something that is my own fault. My mother and I don't give Grandma as much interaction as she would like. We used to sit and watch TV with her (I'd work a crossword puzzle), but Grandma would end up falling asleep. Mom and I got bored so we left. We used to play games with Grandma but she can't sit at the table very long anymore. She complains about the chair being too hard despite having cushions in it. She also can't seem to play anything other than easy, boring games like Rummy, Uno, Dominoes and Carcassonne and I end up becoming extremely sleepy and fidgety at the table. So I'm sure that lack of mental stimulation hasn't helped.
I was thinking about getting her a Kindle Fire so she could play some word or card games on it, but I don't know if she would. She falls asleep trying to do word searches in her book. Last year she was plowing through those puzzles and I was having to always buy new books, but at this rate I won't have to buy one before the end of the year. The good news is that she has an excellent appetite. She's always hungry. I wish she'd drink more beverages, but at least her appetite is good.
So any opinions on whether she can wait until August to see a neurologist? I suppose I could try forcing myself to play more games and interacting with her more. I have tried, but she really does drive me crazy - literally.
I might be able to get an appointment for June or July with another neurologist, but her online reviews are mediocre. A relative that goes to her also isn't pleased with her but has limited choices in where she can go.
How can I know if Grandma can wait until August for a diagnosis? Will waiting that long make a difference? I don't know if there's any medication that can help her. She may have some depression too, I don't know.
She sleeps all the time. If I didn't get her out of bed, she'd probably never get out. Then after breakfast, she pretty much sleeps until bedtime. I wake her every two hours to use the bathroom and then she gets mad for waking her up. She states that if she had to go to the bathroom she would go, but that's not true. She pees in her diaper instead of getting up to use the toilet. I don't know if she deliberately pees in her diaper or if she no longer has control over her bladder. She was even napping in the waiting room of the doctor's office the other day. Then during the entire exam she was moaning or whatever that obnoxious noise is that she makes.
The one thing that does bother me is something that is my own fault. My mother and I don't give Grandma as much interaction as she would like. We used to sit and watch TV with her (I'd work a crossword puzzle), but Grandma would end up falling asleep. Mom and I got bored so we left. We used to play games with Grandma but she can't sit at the table very long anymore. She complains about the chair being too hard despite having cushions in it. She also can't seem to play anything other than easy, boring games like Rummy, Uno, Dominoes and Carcassonne and I end up becoming extremely sleepy and fidgety at the table. So I'm sure that lack of mental stimulation hasn't helped.
I was thinking about getting her a Kindle Fire so she could play some word or card games on it, but I don't know if she would. She falls asleep trying to do word searches in her book. Last year she was plowing through those puzzles and I was having to always buy new books, but at this rate I won't have to buy one before the end of the year. The good news is that she has an excellent appetite. She's always hungry. I wish she'd drink more beverages, but at least her appetite is good.
So any opinions on whether she can wait until August to see a neurologist? I suppose I could try forcing myself to play more games and interacting with her more. I have tried, but she really does drive me crazy - literally.