Late stage Alzheimer’s
- Thread starter Jill1961
- Start date
Thinking of you. I'm new to the forum and my mother in law is waiting for the memory clinic.
But I do have experience of my grandmother who sadly died of oesophageal cancer. She went without eating or drinking for a surprisingly long time.
I'm just at the start of the dementia journey and I'm not sure if people go through phases of not eating and drinking or if some other way of getting nutrition would be considered.
I'm not sure if my grandmother was offered some other way of eating that would bypass her blocked oesophagus but of course she was also extremely poorly with the cancer and unable to have chemotherapy so it might not have been in her best interests to prolong her illness with a feeding tube or whatever they might have done.
I'm so sorry, it's such a distressing time for you and your family.
But I do have experience of my grandmother who sadly died of oesophageal cancer. She went without eating or drinking for a surprisingly long time.
I'm just at the start of the dementia journey and I'm not sure if people go through phases of not eating and drinking or if some other way of getting nutrition would be considered.
I'm not sure if my grandmother was offered some other way of eating that would bypass her blocked oesophagus but of course she was also extremely poorly with the cancer and unable to have chemotherapy so it might not have been in her best interests to prolong her illness with a feeding tube or whatever they might have done.
I'm so sorry, it's such a distressing time for you and your family.
Im so sorry to hear about your mum @Jill1961
End of life is so hard to bear. My mum died from dementia and she did not eat or drink anything for 17 days, which I had not thought possible. Stopping eating and drinking is part of the dying process and the body can no longer assimilate food and fluid. The length of time that they go is very variable, though. Some people only go a couple of days and my mum was at the other end of the spectrum.
Speak to the nurses who will undoubtably have seen this before as to how far along she is. There are other physical changes that happen before death - mottling of the skin, the limbs going cold and (right at the end) changes in the breathing. It is not easy to witness these things. Please rely as much as possible on carers and nurses coming in if she is at home, or on the staff if she is in a care/nursing home.
Praying for strength for you
((((((((((((((((((((((((hugs)))))))))))))))))))))
End of life is so hard to bear. My mum died from dementia and she did not eat or drink anything for 17 days, which I had not thought possible. Stopping eating and drinking is part of the dying process and the body can no longer assimilate food and fluid. The length of time that they go is very variable, though. Some people only go a couple of days and my mum was at the other end of the spectrum.
Speak to the nurses who will undoubtably have seen this before as to how far along she is. There are other physical changes that happen before death - mottling of the skin, the limbs going cold and (right at the end) changes in the breathing. It is not easy to witness these things. Please rely as much as possible on carers and nurses coming in if she is at home, or on the staff if she is in a care/nursing home.
Praying for strength for you
((((((((((((((((((((((((hugs)))))))))))))))))))))
Hello @Jill1961 and firstly welcome to this friendly and supportive forum.
I am so sorry to read about your Mum. I can only echo what @canary has already said. End of life can be so variable and for my own dear Mum, she went for some considerable time without eating and drinking that I didn't think possible. It's just heart breaking to have to witness it. I am so sorry.
I hope she is at least, is in a nursing home, comfortable and pain free. Wishing you strength.
I am so sorry to read about your Mum. I can only echo what @canary has already said. End of life can be so variable and for my own dear Mum, she went for some considerable time without eating and drinking that I didn't think possible. It's just heart breaking to have to witness it. I am so sorry.
I hope she is at least, is in a nursing home, comfortable and pain free. Wishing you strength.
Thanks for all your replies. When mum got ill, with the nurse and as a family, we decided to keep mum at home instead of going to hospital. We are a large family and are managing her around the clock, with a nurse coming every day to check on her and start the EOL medication and her usual carers coming 3 times a day to keep her clean. Mum is comfortable and we are happy she’s home with us in a calm and loving environment. We knew mum wasn’t going to get better, so we have done this knowing she would want to be surrounded by her family when the time comes. It was a difficult decision, but we feel it’s the right one for our lovely mum.
