As I mentioned in my previous post, Mom fell recently and often a fall can lead to a downward slope. However, I really was not expecting this quick decline of Mom's in the last week. I just don't see how the fall, which did not hurt her, was just a bit scary, led to where we are today.
She is having trouble feeding herself and can't always figure out how to use her utensils. She is much more confused, sometimes talking like it is 20 or so years ago, but still fully aware that I am her adult child. Her hallucinations have increased. For some reason she thinks her house is actually three houses. Frequently what she says is completely out of context and we feel bad we can't figure out what she is trying to tell us. I am getting the sense that her anxiety has been heightened so much after the fall that everything is scary to her and anxiety can make you pretty confused and flustered. It can't be helping her already compromised brain.
Dementia is just so darn frustrating. In our experience, Mom stays stable for a bit but then gets worse by a big quick change rather than a gradual change. Just as soon as we get used to taking care of Mom the way she is, she all of the sudden gets a lot worse. You feel like you are always playing catch up and not doing enough because you can't figure out how to help her fast enough.
It's like any illness with no cure. When medicines don't help and there is nothing you can really do, you just have to do the best you can.
Blessings,
Rev. Katie
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