Dad keeps a journal. One of the ways he has coped with all the transitions we’ve encountered over the past difficult years is writing. Recently, he found an abbreviated timeline with entries starting in 2006. Since Mom “wrote” last week, it’s a good time for him to speak. He wrote in short hand, using military dates.
19 Mar 06 – ate lunch after church, walking back in the house, got a “catch” in her back.
22 Mar 06 – after hurting since Sunday, she was given a shot for pain and started taking pain pills
24 Mar 06 – MRI – was on pain pills, very difficult to keep her still
1 Apr 06 – Began therapy – continues to be in pain – unsure of herself – didn’t want to be alone – couldn’t get in and out of chair alone
13 April 06 – She now has had 4 therapy sessions.
During the last of April, she had several pain free days but became very dependent on me. Didn’t want me to go anywhere without her. Started water therapy.
29 May 06 – confused by the alarm – afraid of the stairs
Aug 06 – mood swings – doing a lot of crying. any criticism, she cries, “I can do nothing right.” Her memory is not good either.
5 Oct 06 – had a polyp removed – not cancerous
23 Nov 06 – Improved so much she was doing household chores, cooking, etc.
July 07 – Began having trouble getting up and down stairs. I or someone needed to be near her when she used the stairs. Began planning for a new master bedroom in the music room.
24 July 07 – stress test and on 8 Aug. got a good report. She was still having trouble getting in and out of her chair.
Aug 07 – Finished the master bedroom and bath. She began pool therapy again. We decided to get a lift chair.
25 Aug 07 – Her fingers became extremely sensitive and she was diagnosed with carpal tunnel. Surgery in September.
(26 Aug 07 – Dad had a TIA – a transient ischemic attack or mini-stroke. Mom couldn’t get him to respond to him. She called me and we spent the evening in the emergency room. It was terrifying, but he came back to us after several hours.)
3 Sept 07- Ruth had a therapy appointment and I had a follow up one because of the mini-stroke.
28 Sept 07 – After her doctor’s appointment, stopped the Forteo shots. I had her given her one every day for 18 months.
Late September, Ruth’s memory is beginning to fail and she says things that she doesn’t mean.
Of course, this isn’t the complete list. It is a quick snapshot of the ups and downs of Stage One dementia. Her mental changes were first noticed when Dad took over the checkbook responsibilities in 2003. Her fragile bones were caused by osteoporosis, not dementia. This was just Dad’s list of the most outstanding moments. He didn’t list all the emotional outbursts or days when she wouldn’t let him out of her sight.
Dementia moves slowly. As in Mom’s case, years can go by before a diagnosis is reached. The hardest part is the unrelenting loss. There are medicines that can slow the disease, but they cannot stop it. Each trauma – in Mom’s case, broken bones and emergency rooms – causes the downward spiral to accelerate.
Imagine a graph with ability on the left vertical side and time on the bottom horizontal line. At some point, all of us start to lose strength in our bodies and sharpness in our minds and the arrow begins a slow, almost imperceptible descent. For dementia patients, the decline is much faster. With each trauma, the arrow drops suddenly. The arrow may rebound slightly once the trauma is past (see November 06 above.) The caregivers rejoice with new hope! In time, that hope is dashed as decline inevitably sets in again. Alzheimer’s is the most predicable decline and Lewy Body is the most erractic. Click here for a great graph.
It seems each dementia patient has at least one secondary health issue that is of concern for caregivers. In Mom’s case, it is osteoporosis. For others, it may be heart issues or blood pressure or COPD. Caring for the other health concerns is magnified because of the dementia.
Our timeline with Mom continues. Although life is difficult, we are so grateful to still have time
