Help with identifying when Loved one is lost

mtress87

Hi Everyone,

I haven't been on this forum for 3 years now since my Mom had her drivers license taken away. She still living at home, and we moved closer to her.  She still heats up her TV dinners in the microwave and heats up soup on the stove.  She goes 1 day a week to the Adult day program and 1 day a care giver comes and spends 3 hours with her. The newest thing I added was a lady comes in 3 x week to do exercises with her.  For the most part everything is going well, and she is still declining.

I'm going to put a tracker on her keys, which is called Tile.com, and see if that will help to find her if she is lost. This costs a fee though. It is probably worth it, but if she forgets her keys some day, then that won't help either.

My question is what have others done for this? 

Emily 123

Something similar that I ordered from Amazon.  The device was the size of those 'hide-a key' boxes, and I had to make sure it was in my Mom's coat pocket.  I think the apple trackers and tiles might be better.  When Mom went into AL I called to cancel the GPS service that I had to pay the monthly fee for, and they went as low as $10/month to try to keep us (was $25).  The peace of mind was worth it though. I think it was called 'Prime Tracking'.

harshedbuzz

I answered your older thread. You didn't comment; perhaps you didn't see it?

My dad wasn't a wanderer, but I was a forum moderator for a couple of Parents of Children with Autism groups and am familiar with protocols for elopement which is a common behavior for kids on spectrum.

HB

tdnp

We have not used Tile, but have a tracker on her Phone as she will not leave the house without it. As she progresses we may have to look into something different but for now it is working for us.

[Deleted User]

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mtress87

Good idea tdnp, but my Mom forgot how to use a cell phone now for a few years.

Victoria2020, thanks for the advice about looking for signs of burnt items!  She's not wandering, but I know with this disease it could cause to unexpectently to forget where she lives and return. But I also live across the street, so she does come over to my place. This is incase something else happens.

Also, someone said 3 years ago that she should be put in care, and she has been doing well. She doesn't have the funds to go into a home voluntarily. That is why we moved closer and I have cameras in her home.

My Mom was limited during Covid for visitors, but now we have people coming in at different times for things. I don't have a full time care giver yet, because it is expensive and cost prohibitive.  She still cares for herself and can dress herself.

I'm going to get a metal "dog tag" with an engraving put on her Medical alert necklace that says:

Her name: If lost please call daughter (my name) at phone xxx-xxx-xxxx.  I think this was funny because she will think it's because of the medical alert being lost, and really it's for her.  I was going to put her address, but then she was worried that someone would "know where she lives".  I also have some neighbors that keep an eye on her.

It's been a good transition living near her!

mtress87

Yes, harshedbuzz I did see you're reply.  Thank you!  I have Android not IOS.  

But the local police might also be an option, but I have neighbors also keeping an eye out for her! 

By the way, how did you reply within my post? I can't seem to figure out how you did that.

harshedbuzz

mtress87 wrote:

Good idea, but my Mom forgot how to use a cell phone now for a few years.

Then she should not be home without human supervision.

My mother had an appointment on a day she was scheduled for the emergency replacement of her HVAC system. At this point, dad was still continent and highly verbal so she would sometimes nip out for an hour or two to shop, get a haircut or see her own doctor. But dad was in a phase where he was stuck on remodeling the house and was fixated on creating a Jack & Jill suite in the upstairs utility closet; mom was afraid he'd direct the techs to do the install elsewhere, so she asked me to keep an eye on dad. 

About an hour into our visit, the smoke detector went off. The tech yelled down that it was from them soldering a pipe and not to worry. About 20-30 seconds after, dad asked what all the noise was and I said "smoke detector". Another 30 seconds pass and he slowly stands up and toddles off announcing that he had to go find my mother. He'd forgotten the tech's explanation and the fact that mom was out, but critically- he forgot what to do in a fire. He didn't call 911 or ask me to. He was never home alone after that.

HB

mtress87

harshedbuzz wrote:

mtress87 wrote:

Good idea, but my Mom forgot how to use a cell phone now for a few years.

Then she should not be home without human supervision.

My mother had an appointment on a day she was scheduled for the emergency replacement of her HVAC system. At this point, dad was still continent and highly verbal so she would sometimes nip out for an hour or two to shop, get a haircut or see her own doctor. But dad was in a phase where he was stuck on remodeling the house and was fixated on creating a Jack & Jill suite in the upstairs utility closet; mom was afraid he'd direct the techs to do the install elsewhere, so she asked me to keep an eye on dad. 

About an hour into our visit, the smoke detector went off. The tech yelled down that it was from them soldering a pipe and not to worry. About 20-30 seconds after, dad asked what all the noise was and I said "smoke detector". Another 30 seconds pass and he slowly stands up and toddles off announcing that he had to go find my mother. He'd forgotten the tech's explanation and the fact that mom was out, but critically- he forgot what to do in a fire. He didn't call 911 or ask me to. He was never home alone after that.

HB

 Thanks but my Mom is fine.  She never understood cell phone anyway. She lives on her own and is managing. I keep an eye on her with cameras in her home and I call her everyday 3 times a day.