Mom with dementia issues falling down

Camella

Registered User
Jun 1, 2015
5
0
La Paz, Bolivia
Hello,
I am a 26 year old daughter of a 56 year old woman with frontotemporal lobe dementia.
My mom had her more "definitive" diagnosis about a year ago, before
That we thought it was alzeihmers.
I was living out of the country and moved back to be with mom when things started to get difficult at home and we have been living together for a year now.
She can barely talk, her spine has begun to curve and her walking has changed, for example her steps are short and abrupt like an older lady.
This whole thing is pretty challenging but the main thing that has me worried out of my wits is that she fell out of bed a while
Back, pretty bad, had to get her stitches
On her brow. So i moved us ( i share a room with her) into the other room where there is a built in bunk bed, i put her bed under the bunk with her head towards the ladder with a pillow in the way, worked for a few nights, but today she sat up and plunged into the ground again, her cheek is swollen, it is awful.
I had her matress on the floor but ive seen her get up and lose her balance and fall right on her bum, it would scare me if she hit her head or hurt her hip or bottom severly, how can i avoid this? She is super
Active, keeps me very very busy all over the house she walks
Around fast and im sure a railing wont stop her.
I feel awful like it makes me feel guilty when these things happen, i want to take care of her better and i have thought
About respite because i know there may come
A time where i may not be capable of caring for her on my own, we have no other familly close by. There is only one respite where i live, i went and asked just to begin getting an idea of how things go and i was shocked when they said they have no space for anyone, the director explained to me that unfortunately many families abandone relatives their and that they are having a very difficult time
Keeping up with the patients they already have.
I am not wanting to put mom in respite too soon but the fact that that may not even be an option has me a bit frightened, what am i to do?
It is comforting in some way to know that i am not the only one out there who loves someone with this illness, any advice from you that have been through a similar experience will be appreciated, thank you.
 

angelface

Registered User
Oct 8, 2011
1,085
0
london
Are you in England Carmella? The way you write makes me wonder if you are in USA.

Hope you don't mind me asking,just that the answers you get will be different if you are not in the UK. Certainly sounds as though you can do with some help.
 

Lindy50

Registered User
Dec 11, 2013
5,242
0
Cotswolds
Hello Camella and welcome to TP :)

I agree with angelface, it would be helpful to know which country you are posting from....simply because services vary from place to place.

It certainly sounds as though you could do with some support. I've got to dash now, but please do post again :)

Lindy xx
 

Camella

Registered User
Jun 1, 2015
5
0
La Paz, Bolivia
Hello,
Thank you all for replying, i am actually all the way in Bolivia, there are not many resources here like support groups or things like that.
I was in living in the US before moving back for mom. So bascially i am on my own kind of need to be clever and figure things out like with issues with falling out of bed and such, i think my best bet would be to place moms mattress on the floor so if she trys to climb of she can basically crawl and wont dive into the ground.
Any ideas?
Thank you
 

angelface

Registered User
Oct 8, 2011
1,085
0
london
I think you are right to keep the matress on the floor,maybe with rugs around to be soft in case she falls?
Would mum use a stick or walking frame to help with balance?
Have you contacted the doctor in case there is any help availible from him?
Must be so hard to have no support.
G xx
 

Camella

Registered User
Jun 1, 2015
5
0
La Paz, Bolivia
Hello and Thank you again,
Yes we visit the doctor at least once a month. My mother is Haloperidol, Diazepam and Carbamazepina, I spoke to the doctor about the diazepam maybe causing her to become dizzy or drouzy, she just said to keep an eye for it but the dosage she takes is not to strong and it really seems to help with anxiety.
Not much more advice, I asked them about what goes on in the mental facility and they said that at this point they would probably just keep my mom sedated, sounds pretty sad.
I think I might need to go talk to a therapist at some point, but I dont know, this whole illness is so surreal, its like mom is there but not.
At the same time being a caregiver keeps you busy so there is not a lot time to sit and reflect and the grander scheme of what is really going on. Memories of what used to be are some how blurred or blocked its like the mind wont allow you to go to that painful place.
Even though i see her every day I know that a huge part of me is hanging on to denial for dear life, the thought of respite care is terrifying right now.
Then comes the daily task of being a caregiver, and even though I am not to surprised when things like falling out of bed or incontinence happens, this illness seems to be quite unpredictable as well, which makes me feel a bit unprepared at times.
Glad to have finally have joined a forum, I wonder why I hadnt thought of this before.
Thank you all and God bless.