Where Did My Dad Go?

 It has been a while.  At one point I thought we were losing Dad. Mom will frequently say that Dad will not be her much longer after a visit. Thise are the bad days, we visit and Dad is non-reactive and sleeps for the entire visit. I went in alone and found him wrapped in a weighted blanket in his bed and his breathing was sporadic and he would pause. I left because I did not want to watch him die. The next day he was wide awake and talkative, my daughter and her husband joined me for a visit and dad offered us drinks and was smiling and laughing. I guess that is the hardest part of what is going on. You never know what to expect when you go for a visit. I have talked to the staff on the floor and they suggested afternoon visits. Dad struggles sleeping through the night so in the morning he sleeps. It actually was a great suggestion. I am really impressed with the staff at Dad's home.  They are always willing to discuss what is happening and share what is happening with D...

 Just came back from visiting my Dad. Absolutely no interaction. Things have been going downhill and it only seems to be accelerating.  Dad had started to get aggressive toward staff and kept trying to get out of his wheelchair. He has been wheelchair bound almost since he got placed in the home. The last few visits have been hit and miss with Dad - he had been sent to the hospital with possible UTI's 4 times in the last three months. He was aggressive and very dozy and always seemed to be twitching. One time actually ended as an ambulance pulled up to take him to the hospital.  That visit I called to see how Dad was doing and I was told he was being treated for an UTI and was on IV antibiotic for 5 days.  Three days into his stay at the hospital I called to see what was happening with visiting hours - they had changed and my mother and I were able to attend as long as we had three doses of vaccine and would wear masks.  We planned on visiting the next day - how...

 It has been a while since I last posted. It has been a busy time! Mom has decided to move into a retirement home and this has happened. She has been there for over two weeks and seems to have settled in. The staff have all been very supportive and are very friendly. It was a difficult decision and has left us with a lot to do. We sold the family car - both my parents no longer had a license to drive so the car just sat in their driveway. It is one of many changes that have come about because of dad's diagnosis. It al is happening too fast. Dad moved on December 9. Mom moved April 27. The past two weeks were spent preparing for a house sale where we got rid of a number of items from my parents home. The Restore Remove program came in on Thursday and cleaned up what remained in the home. This program may have saved my sanity. Every time I drove by my parent's home I would think of what lay ahead. There was so much to do.  Wednesday we meet with the real estate agent and the hou...

 Good morning.... Just came back from helping my parents put up their artificial tree.  That was the easy part -  it seems every time I stop by their home (which seems to be daily) things seem to just slide down a steeper slope. At first it is difficult to see the changes that are taking place, they seem to be so gradual. Eventually you reach a point where the changes seem to slap you in the face to make sure that you realize how bad things are getting. Today was one of those days. Dad loves to watch sports on TV, baseball in the summer and hockey in the winter. He was able to navigate his television with no problems and would often be able to tell anyone when a game was on... even if I did not think their was a game! Eventually this began to change. Dad could no longer find games on television. He was not sure which channels the games would be on, even which channels would be showing a game. I made them a list of the sports channels theat are available on their TV and mo...

 My Father has Alzheimer's. He was diagnosed Five years ago but as I look back we have seen signs for many years.  I ignored the signs and refused to disrupt  my family's life. It was a huge mistake, I am  paying the price now as we attempt to place Dad and Mom is struggling to deal with him at home. We were a typical Canadian family. Dad worked as an electrician in a Chemical Mill, Mom as a meat clerk in a grocery store.  I was an only child and sailed through life freely not worrying about much. I got a good education and had an entire career as an educator. I got married to a wonderful supportive woman and have three wonderful children. I am now retired from my career and a full time caregiver for both my parents.  As I look back there are a number of things I should not have ignored that may have helped in my journey. A few years ago we started to see Dad struggle with driving his car. Dad was involved in an accident 14 years ago and when the police inf...