Hello,
I'd really appreciate any advice or experiences anyone can offer.
I'm concerned about my mother and I'm unsure if her symptoms could be due to alcohol, dementia or something else entirely.
I'm in my late twenties and my mother has drank heavily on a daily basis for as long as I can remember. She has never acknowledged that she has a problem with alcohol even though many family members and doctors have said she should seek help and that her drinking is a problem.
Recently, her memory has started to become impaired. It initially started with forgetting the odd appointment and conversation here and there, but now you can have the same conversation with her multiple times in the same half an hour. The number of trips and falls she has, has increased resulting in a few trips to hospital and her appetite has changed quite dramatically. If I ask her directly about these, she always brushes it off as unimportant. I suspect a recent increase in alcohol use but I'm unsure as she always hides her empties, lies about how much she's had etc.
I'm finding it difficult to figure out if this is just a result of alcohol (and an increase in usage) or if we should be suspecting dementia due to the memory and appetite changes in particular? If so, there's no way she would acknowledge this and seek help especially as it is intertwined with the drinking and any time drinking has been brought up by a doctor she then starts to refuse care. Additionally, my mum isn't what I would consider elderly and she's below the age of 65 .
Any thoughts or experiences would be most appreciated. I have no idea what to do!
Thanks,
Kitty
I'd really appreciate any advice or experiences anyone can offer.
I'm concerned about my mother and I'm unsure if her symptoms could be due to alcohol, dementia or something else entirely.
I'm in my late twenties and my mother has drank heavily on a daily basis for as long as I can remember. She has never acknowledged that she has a problem with alcohol even though many family members and doctors have said she should seek help and that her drinking is a problem.
Recently, her memory has started to become impaired. It initially started with forgetting the odd appointment and conversation here and there, but now you can have the same conversation with her multiple times in the same half an hour. The number of trips and falls she has, has increased resulting in a few trips to hospital and her appetite has changed quite dramatically. If I ask her directly about these, she always brushes it off as unimportant. I suspect a recent increase in alcohol use but I'm unsure as she always hides her empties, lies about how much she's had etc.
I'm finding it difficult to figure out if this is just a result of alcohol (and an increase in usage) or if we should be suspecting dementia due to the memory and appetite changes in particular? If so, there's no way she would acknowledge this and seek help especially as it is intertwined with the drinking and any time drinking has been brought up by a doctor she then starts to refuse care. Additionally, my mum isn't what I would consider elderly and she's below the age of 65 .
Any thoughts or experiences would be most appreciated. I have no idea what to do!
Thanks,
Kitty