We took MIL to her usual Mental Health appointment yesterday, and I need to know what you think about the way health professionals see AD sufferers.
Mary has been living with us (my husband, her son, one of 2 and the only one that bothers, brother thinks it's all put on but is happy to devolve responsibility) for 3 years, she has been on Aricept for about 4 and a half years. Physically she's fine, but her short term memory is virtually non existent, you all know how it is.
A few months ago her GP halved the anti depressants that the Psycho-Geriaitrician had prescribed, and I don't know if its that or the general run of the disease that's made her more confrontational, restless and unhappy. He has now increased the dose to see if it makes a difference.
She recently accused us of keeping her prisoner, and regularly says we go out all day and leave her on her own, when I may have just been in another room, or upstairs ( she lived in a bungalow so doesn't know about the other half of the house)
Thing is, when the doctor asked how things were, her version was pure fiction ( even down to telling him she cooks for herself, when she stopped doing that even living on her own, months before we moved her to be with us, her malnutrition being a major reason) but when I told the doctor she had been far more restless than usual, she looked at me as if I had crawled out from under a stone!!!
Now I know that he is probably well aware that her version of her health is far from the truth, but in an effort not to upset her, and as is right the conversation is mainly with her, he doesn't really know if she's worse as he no longer does the MMSE. He never asks if we want to speak alone, and it would be difficult as Mary may then think we are up to something, though it wouldn't last long!!!!
We have no Social workers or CPN's attached, but I'd like to know how others cope with this situation. I don't like to bother him too much, and ownder if a CPN would ease some of the niggly queries there are?
Mary has been living with us (my husband, her son, one of 2 and the only one that bothers, brother thinks it's all put on but is happy to devolve responsibility) for 3 years, she has been on Aricept for about 4 and a half years. Physically she's fine, but her short term memory is virtually non existent, you all know how it is.
A few months ago her GP halved the anti depressants that the Psycho-Geriaitrician had prescribed, and I don't know if its that or the general run of the disease that's made her more confrontational, restless and unhappy. He has now increased the dose to see if it makes a difference.
She recently accused us of keeping her prisoner, and regularly says we go out all day and leave her on her own, when I may have just been in another room, or upstairs ( she lived in a bungalow so doesn't know about the other half of the house)
Thing is, when the doctor asked how things were, her version was pure fiction ( even down to telling him she cooks for herself, when she stopped doing that even living on her own, months before we moved her to be with us, her malnutrition being a major reason) but when I told the doctor she had been far more restless than usual, she looked at me as if I had crawled out from under a stone!!!
Now I know that he is probably well aware that her version of her health is far from the truth, but in an effort not to upset her, and as is right the conversation is mainly with her, he doesn't really know if she's worse as he no longer does the MMSE. He never asks if we want to speak alone, and it would be difficult as Mary may then think we are up to something, though it wouldn't last long!!!!
We have no Social workers or CPN's attached, but I'd like to know how others cope with this situation. I don't like to bother him too much, and ownder if a CPN would ease some of the niggly queries there are?