Mum recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s
- Thread starter Kc4
- Start date
Hello @Kc4
Welcome. Your mum, and you, will need a bit of time to adjust. Take it a day at a time and don’t rush. The link below might be useful. Have a look around the website when you are ready but don’t assume everything you read about will happen to your mum.
There are lots of us out here to help you along so keep posting for advice and support.
www.alzheimers.org.uk
Welcome. Your mum, and you, will need a bit of time to adjust. Take it a day at a time and don’t rush. The link below might be useful. Have a look around the website when you are ready but don’t assume everything you read about will happen to your mum.
There are lots of us out here to help you along so keep posting for advice and support.
After receiving a dementia diagnosis
There’s a lot to think about if you find out you have dementia. Our advice explains what happens immediately after you're told, and how to access support.
www.alzheimers.org.uk
Hi @Kc4, has she said why she won't take the medication? There is a huge range of possible reasons ( some more irrational than others unfortunately). Does she understand how the medication is expected to help her?, hopefully the doctor explained but it can be a lot to take in. A lot of people I talked to when I was still nursing saw decisions re medication as irreversible, reassuring her she can stop if they don't work or if they cause her problems may make her feel in control enough to give it a try. Many people also worry about side effects but in my experience memory clinic will start at the lowest dose possible to avoid these and then build up the dose depending on how your mum responds to the medication.
Good luck, everyone responds differently - my MIL saw medication as a possible cure and would have taken 10 times as many tablets as prescribed, but my mum was scared of the possible side effects - the information sheet scared her silly but she agreed to give it a try when she realised that the initial dose was very low and that it would be built up over a few weeks to a therapeutic dose.
Good luck, everyone responds differently - my MIL saw medication as a possible cure and would have taken 10 times as many tablets as prescribed, but my mum was scared of the possible side effects - the information sheet scared her silly but she agreed to give it a try when she realised that the initial dose was very low and that it would be built up over a few weeks to a therapeutic dose.
The doctor explained about the medication really well. I was asking lots of questions as well. I thought I’d give her some time to digest the diagnosis and try again. I spoke to her again yesterday evening but she’s still adamant that she wont take any medication. Mum is really hard to talk to, she is very quiet and hardly talks.
I can only recommend you get Lasting Power of attorney while your Mum still has her faculties. We were unaware of the problems caused by not having power of attorney when my mother in law had to go into a care home and lost mental capacity to take care of her finances. We are now having to apply for deputy ship which is lenghty and costly.
Hi @Kc4 I'm sorry your mum won't consider medication, but it doesn't work for everyone, though some people do find that it does help.
I agree with @nimby00, making sure you have things such as Lasting Power of Attorney are set up, are maybe more important battles to fight at the moment.
I agree with @nimby00, making sure you have things such as Lasting Power of Attorney are set up, are maybe more important battles to fight at the moment.
Thank you all for the advice. We are in the process of arranging POA.
Mum changed her mind and has agreed to try medication. She has been prescribed memantine.
Since diagnosis she has been extremely tearful. Also saying she won’t be around for much longer. I can’t imagine how she’s feeling but should I be worried??
Mum changed her mind and has agreed to try medication. She has been prescribed memantine.
Since diagnosis she has been extremely tearful. Also saying she won’t be around for much longer. I can’t imagine how she’s feeling but should I be worried??
And power of attorney for health as this is important or else you have to have best interest decisions agreed with social dr etc
My doctor saw mum when she didn’t want to take her medication. She was very good, discussed each medication said what it did and suggested mum take it. When we got to memantine she said that it worked in the background and tied everything together. A lovely description though possibly not medically accurate. Mum has taken her medication for the last 18 months without a whimper!!
hello @Grannyandpaps
just to offer a warm welcome to DTP
I'm sure you'll find the forums supportive and helpful
just to offer a warm welcome to DTP
I'm sure you'll find the forums supportive and helpful
I totally agree.luckily I got peer of attorney in place for mum shortly after diagnosis . It's invaluable.
It sounds like your mum still has mental capacity - to an extent - so I'm not surprised she's struggling with her feelings about diagnosis and taking meds. I certainly would be!
Does she know much about dementia and is she able to relate that to herself? People react very differently - many deny there is anything wrong, either because they don't want to believe it or they really can't see it themselves. Others worry about their future - hardly surprising. The trouble is, there's nothing comforting you can tell her about her future - she won't ever get better than she is today, she will get considerably worse...
I wonder if you could talk to her GP about an anti-depressant - it might lift her mood a little.
