Your mom has Alzheimer’s disease, and you’re offering the supportive care she needs when you can. For now, this system works well, but what happens as the disease advances? When your family is living with Alzheimer’s, what does the future look like? Have you investigated in-home care services? It’s time to look into having someone else to help out.
Here are the stages of Alzheimer’s that in-home care providers can assist with.
The Early Stages
The early stages are less alarming, but it’s still time to start considering in-home care. The earlier your mom adjusts to having caregivers helping out, the easier the transition is in the years to come.
In the early stages, your mom is going to forget that she made an appointment. She’s going to need reminders to take her medications, and someone has to be available to drive her around. She may start over-purchasing items as her inventorying skills diminish.
The Middle Stages
In the middle stages of Alzheimer’s, you’ll likely see extreme mood swings with your mom. She will go from happy one minute to angry and even verbally or physically abusive. You might notice a pattern where the anger and agitation occur later in the afternoon or evening, as the sun starts to set. This is common and is known as sundowning.
Being able to redirect your mom when she’s sundowning is important. She’s also likely to want to “go home” constantly. It’s not that she understands what she means, but this is less about actually wanting to go home as it is that she’s scared and uncomfortable. Finding out what is concerning her is important.
She needs constant supervision to ensure she doesn’t wander off. If she’s going to cook a meal, she has to have someone make sure it’s taken off the stove in time and doesn’t start a kitchen fire. If she’s still doing the laundry, you need to switch it to the dryer or it might sit for too long and become musty.
The Late Stages
If you haven’t arranged in-home care by this point, it’s definitely time. In the late stages, your mom is unlikely to talk much, and if she does, it’s gibberish. She’s going to struggle to remain mobile and may start to require a wheelchair.
She will not be able to shower on her own. Plus, your mom’s going to need help with toileting, getting dressed, and caring for his skin, teeth, and nails.
If she’s still eating on her own, she has to have finger foods. It’s very unlikely that she’ll have the fine motor skills to properly use a spoon, knife, or fork. She may start needing softer foods and nutritional shakes.
It’s not surprising to reach a point where your mom is bedridden. She’s going to need sponge baths and someone to help with perineal care.
Family caregivers need to make sure they’re leaving time for self-care. This gets harder as Alzheimer’s advances, but in-home care offers the support your mom leaves. You can take a day off knowing she’s in great hands when you schedule in-home care services.
If you or an aging loved one are considering In-Home Care Services in Cookeville TN please contact the caring staff at Senior Solutions Home Care. (931) 208-1019
Senior Solutions Home Care is a Trusted Home Care Agency serving Cookeville, Algood, Baxter, Monterey, Sparta, Smithville, Livingston, Dodson Branch, Gainesboro, Putnam County, and surrounding areas.
Over the years, we have expanded, providing service in all 95 counties throughout Tennessee, and we now have a growing presence in Georgia.
Senior Solutions is recognized as a top 5% independent agency and a three-time Inc. 5000 honoree in 2018, 2019, and 2020. These types of awards matter to us because they show growth in our goal of eventually touching a million lives. We’re excited to continue that growth and to touch even more families with our commitment to quality care!
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