I was looking over your site this morning and everyone seemed to have a caring heart and very supportive...just the place I need to be.
My mother (80) lives with me and has been diagnosed with early stages of Alzheimers. I watched my dads mom battle this horrible disease and it was the worst thing I've ever had to experience. She was in a nursing home when she finally gave up the battle, and I promised my mom I would NEVER put her in a home. Mom was always active, yard work, housework, just busy, busy and 4 years ago she broke her hip and had an aortic anurisim and it's been downhill ever since. She's very depressed and has all but given up on life. She sleeps almost all day, won't eat until I get home from work and put dinner on the table. She forgets...constantly asking me the same questions over and over til I'm ready to explode! Our conversations consist of asking me for pain pills, thats all. She's lost interest in everything and gets mad at me if I don't give her pills everytime she asks. She has osteoporis, fibromyalgia and COPD, I know she hurts, but I can't just fill her up on pain meds. When I get frustrated I know she senses it and begins to cry, then I feel awful. Sometimes I feel as though its selective on her part because when someone visits (which is rare) she doesn't complain at all. She was recently in the hospital for COPD and the 3 days there she never once asked for a pain pill or complained about hurting and as soon as I got her home, she started with me. I tend to feel like she just likes making me miserable. How do I deal with the guilt of not giving in to her and the frustration of her memory loss? I don't have a lot of patience and am under a lot of stress at work on top of everything going on at home. I really feel like I'm at my wits end. Does anyone have any encouraging words of advice for me...they are much appreciated and any suggestions are very welcomed! thanks!!!
My mother (80) lives with me and has been diagnosed with early stages of Alzheimers. I watched my dads mom battle this horrible disease and it was the worst thing I've ever had to experience. She was in a nursing home when she finally gave up the battle, and I promised my mom I would NEVER put her in a home. Mom was always active, yard work, housework, just busy, busy and 4 years ago she broke her hip and had an aortic anurisim and it's been downhill ever since. She's very depressed and has all but given up on life. She sleeps almost all day, won't eat until I get home from work and put dinner on the table. She forgets...constantly asking me the same questions over and over til I'm ready to explode! Our conversations consist of asking me for pain pills, thats all. She's lost interest in everything and gets mad at me if I don't give her pills everytime she asks. She has osteoporis, fibromyalgia and COPD, I know she hurts, but I can't just fill her up on pain meds. When I get frustrated I know she senses it and begins to cry, then I feel awful. Sometimes I feel as though its selective on her part because when someone visits (which is rare) she doesn't complain at all. She was recently in the hospital for COPD and the 3 days there she never once asked for a pain pill or complained about hurting and as soon as I got her home, she started with me. I tend to feel like she just likes making me miserable. How do I deal with the guilt of not giving in to her and the frustration of her memory loss? I don't have a lot of patience and am under a lot of stress at work on top of everything going on at home. I really feel like I'm at my wits end. Does anyone have any encouraging words of advice for me...they are much appreciated and any suggestions are very welcomed! thanks!!!