CPA Dementia

[VinceR]

Hi my partner has just been diagnosed with CPA Dementia, she was a computer programmer who now can't read a clock or do basic maths!! Her memory is not bad at all. There seems to be little help for this sort of dementia - does anyone have experience with CPA or can point me in the direction of where I might get more help

 

[Dunroamin]

Does this help?

 

[VinceR]

That looks great, thank you.

 

[canary]

Thank you @Dunroamin - thats a really good outline

@VinceR - A lot of different specific problems are shared among the different types of dementias, so if there are any specific problems we may well be able to help - eg advice on mobility aids, incontinence, and behaviour issues

 

[VinceR]

@canary the main problems Karen has using the logic part of her brain ie Maths, spelling and difficulty in following simple instructions (for instance a recipe) I just don't what can help!!

 

[VinceR]

Reading the above it looks like my brain can't handle simple sentence structure!!

 

[canary]

@canary the main problems Karen has using the logic part of her brain ie Maths, spelling and difficulty in following simple instructions (for instance a recipe) I just don't what can help!!

This is common in a lot of types of dementia. My OH does not have PCA, but has trouble with all of the above. As he has progressed I have had to gradually take over all the things that he used to do. I started off helping him, then doing most of it with him helping and now I just do it. He can still (usually) make himself a cup of coffee and a sandwich, but he cant do anything else and even that is becoming harder for him. He was once a brilliant engineer and mathematician and to see him struggling to count backwards is so sad.

I have ended up doing the things that I used to do plus all the things that OH used to do plus looking after him, and there is simply not enough hours in the day, so I delegate what i can. I started off with a claener to do housework, then gardeners to keep the garden tidy and now I have carers to get him washed and dressed in the morning.

 

[VinceR]

This is common in a lot of types of dementia. My OH does not have PCA, but has trouble with all of the above. As he has progressed I have had to gradually take over all the things that he used to do. I started off helping him, then doing most of it with him helping and now I just do it. He can still (usually) make himself a cup of coffee and a sandwich, but he cant do anything else and even that is becoming harder for him. He was once a brilliant engineer and mathematician and to see him struggling to count backwards is so sad.

I have ended up doing the things that I used to do plus all the things that OH used to do plus looking after him, and there is simply not enough hours in the day, so I delegate what i can. I started off with a claener to do housework, then gardeners to keep the garden tidy and now I have carers to get him washed and dressed in the morning.

That is very similar my BH isn't at that point of not being to look after herself as far as washing and getting dressed but I do worry about how long have a got with the real person before the dementia takes over. Luckily her memory currently isn't really affected but from what I have read it will spread.

 

[canary]

Yes, Im afraid this is the thing with every type of dementia.
The only advice is to not look too far into the future and make the most of, and enjoy, the good years. Make allowances for the things she can no longer do and do what she still can while she can.
xx

 

[VinceR]

@canary thank you. xx

 

[Cardinal]

I have a close friend who’s husband had CPA Dementia. She said she found the most help on a message board for caregivers of people with CPA Dementia that she found on Facebook. At home she put different colored tape on the floor for her husband to follow from the bedroom to the bathroom and another color from the living room to the bathroom. She also bought a white kitchen table and had him use dark colored plastic plates and cups. She did that so there was contrast between the table and the dishes so the dishes were easier for her husband to see. She hot glued silicone to the bottom of the dishes so they wouldn’t slide on the table.

Her husband lived about 7 years from the time of diagnosis. He kept his memory for several years but because of vision problems she had to cut up his food and feed him a year or two after diagnosis.

 

[VinceR]

Thank you, they are some very good ideas for when Karen's sight gets worse and I will look for that message board.

 

[Cardinal]

Hopefully your wife is no longer driving. The first thing my friend’s husband lost was his depth perception. Even though he could pass a vision test he couldn’t tell how far away things were. So he could easily have hit another car or even a person thinking they were farther away than they were. It’s also why she made as much contrast as possible between the kitchen table and the dishes.

Because CPA is so rare she was never able to find much help in what to expect, except for the message board.

 

[VinceR]

No, thankfully she never learnt but I am worried she will hurt herself in the kitchen because of a lack depth perception or just a lack of mental focus which is something she is dealing with almost constantly!!