Sippy cup for ALZ

BassetHoundAnn

My mom can no longer hold a cup or glass to take a drink. She tries to hold it but invariably drops or spills it then no longer wants to drink. She has severe arthritis and the manual dexterity in her hands is gone. Would some sort of sippy cup work? She claims she doesn't like to drink from straws. Any recommendations for products?

May flowers

We haven’t used the sippy part lid of this yet, but I do know it’s been easy for my LO to hold: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0835TJRQB

towhee

I would not try to move to a straw, since as the disease progresses straws can lead to choking. Quite a few sippy cups are available, I would do some experimenting before buying one. You might look and see if a smaller diameter cup fits in her hands better, whether a lighter cup helps, whether one she can hold with two hands will help. Some cups for arthritis have two handles, some have different shapes. You might get some different ones at Target and Walmart and see if anything is helpful before you order one online. You can also try holding the cup yourself and letting her guide it to tilt and drink and/or consult an occupational therapist.

Jo C.

If you Google, "Adult Sippy Cups," you will get many different options; some are especially desgned for those with arthritis.

J.

BassetHoundAnn

Thanks everyone for the recommendations! Today I tried to help her drink from a small sippy water bottle. It didn't go well. She couldn't hold it in spite of the small size and the indentations on the sides. She couldn't understand how to drink from it. I placed the spout in her mouth and slowly tipped the bottle back but she kept collapsing backward onto the bed. She was sitting on the edge of the bed at the time. I tried to hold her up while positioning the sippy spout in or near her mouth but she fought me off. Upon her insistence that she wanted her juice in a regular cup I poured her juice in a cup. She wasn't able to hold it securely or bring it to her lips and splattered juice all over. She's in a memory care and I don't know how or if the aids are getting her to drink anything at meals. Totally stumped.

Fairyland

I used something called a doidy cup for my infants, it’s a slanted cup.  It worked quite well, so it occurred to me it might help in this case.

 https://www.doidycups.com/collections/all

BassetHoundAnn

Thanks, Fairyland! I'll give that a try.

harshedbuzz

BHA-

I would encourage you to ask the MCF to bring in an SLP for a swallowing evaluation at this point. Several of the things you are describing sound dangerous if she has progressed to the point where she's not able to reliably self-feed. My dad developed swallowing issues sooner than I would have expected- at the point where he was weirdly conversant and still knew his people. 

The SLP told us the little sports bottles and straws we were using were a big part of the problem. His ability to swallow was sluggish. His epiglottis didn't react quickly enough to close off his airway making straws and sports bottles dangerous for him. It was critical to offer him food or drinks only when he was seated upright in a chair despite his preference for snacking in a reclined position. 

An SLP may have suggestions for a cup she could safely handle and strategies to keep her safely hydrated. She may need her liquids thickened. She might have progressed to needing to be hand-fed. In the meantime, you can work on hydration using foods with a high water content- ice chips, fruit popsicles, bites of watery fruits like melon or orange.

Good luck.

HB

toolbeltexpert

Thanks HB for the comment about your dad. My dw has had a lot of trouble with liquids going down the wrong way, I thought it was to early for that since she's still pretty much with it. But it is noticeable more than once in a while. I have had to pull over when it happened in the car. And for sure it happens more in the car. I always warn her if a bump is coming and she's taking a drink.

harshedbuzz

TBE-

That sounds so scary. It sounds like your wife shouldn't be drinking in a moving car. 

In dementia, the ability to manage liquids typically comes before choking on other foods. We were also warned against foods that have a mixed texture like cereal and milk or chunky soups. 

HB

BassetHoundAnn

harshedbuzz wrote:

BHA-

I would encourage you to ask the MCF to bring in an SLP for a swallowing evaluation at this point. Several of the things you are describing sound dangerous if she has progressed to the point where she's not able to reliably self-feed. My dad developed swallowing issues sooner than I would have expected- at the point where he was weirdly conversant and still knew his people. 

The SLP told us the little sports bottles and straws we were using were a big part of the problem. His ability to swallow was sluggish. His epiglottis didn't react quickly enough to close off his airway making straws and sports bottles dangerous for him. It was critical to offer him food or drinks only when he was seated upright in a chair despite his preference for snacking in a reclined position. 

An SLP may have suggestions for a cup she could safely handle and strategies to keep her safely hydrated. She may need her liquids thickened. She might have progressed to needing to be hand-fed. In the meantime, you can work on hydration using foods with a high water content- ice chips, fruit popsicles, bites of watery fruits like melon or orange.

Good luck.

HB

Thank you, HB! Once again you nailed it. We got an order from her doctor for a swallowing evaluation and the MC is bringing in someone to evaluate her. Like your dad my mom is still conversant, although her words are growing unintelligible. Thank you for the apt suggestion. 

live in daughter

Hi BHA, when my Mom could no longer drink from a cup we would spoon the liquids into her mouth. Though this took a long time she was able to get liquids in this way.

Hope this helps.