Girl got big

RobertsBrown

 

I have not noticed anyone commenting on this, so here is my take.

Cooking and meal prep. Has been my job for years now.  When we shop, I basically shop and she ponies along behind me making rare suggestions.  This means I am running the calories at our house, and you would expect that we would pretty much stay the same size and weight, as our diets are very stable.

My gal was never petite, but she is now XXL in everything but her shoes.  How does this happen?  I sure want to know so I have been doing some digging.

The results of my amateur research seem to indicate a change in metabolism brought on by brain disfunction.  Hormone levels, chemical imbalances…a whole list of things that I lack the education to truly understand.  I mean, I get it, but I am not about to publish a paper on the subject, you know?

One thing:  Since I am in charge of all inputs, and I am also involved in all evacuations, I have some real insight into the digestive process of another human being.  When I can step away from the emotionality of that and observe it as more of a scientist, it definitely defines some truths.

I have learned to balance snacks, alternating fresh fruit, chips, sweets, and veggies in such a way that she stays pretty regular (for her) and healthy….ish.

We generally keep to a whole food diet, very little prepared or packaged foods, and on a very regular schedule.  My one HUGE mistake was ‘sports drinks’ a few years back.  That really blew up the weight gain, but eliminating that didn’t reverse the process…just plateaued  the gains.

Do you folks also experience this weight gain in your people?

toolbeltexpert

Yes Robert but my wife's gains seemed to be tied to a medicine, and possibly lack of exercise. She never exercised before but she has gain more than 10 pounds in three months. She is taking Zyprexia, and that is a possible side effect from this drug. I just asked the nurses to do a blood work for her sugar. I have a base blood work before she was on any medicine. this is a recommended check after 12 weeks.

MaryG123

I would suspect reduced activity as being the cause of the weight gain.  My DH gains weight if he even looks at food, but I’ve decided I don’t even care anymore.  Eventually he’ll have the opposite issue.

ImMaggieMae

Robert, could you try cutting out the snacks or use whole fruits for snacks? There are a lot of packaged foods that are healthy and balanced these days for times when you don’t have time or the inclination to cook. Lack of activity could be some of it, but it takes a lot of activity to burn calories as most of us who ever tried to lose weight know. I haven’t looked into the way dementia affects weight but if you think you’re on top of the normal things like portion control, maybe it is a hormonal thing. Has she had a blood test for thyroid activity lately? That can have a big influence and can be corrected with medication.

Just Bill

My wife lost a lot of weight. Then zyprexa and ice cream got her back to her fighting weight. She has always had a sweet tooth and since she was so skinny ice cream puts weight on fast. Now she is addicted to her daily ice cream. Even with all her medication her energy level is very high. We walk 1 to 2 miles a day plus she just cannot sit still. Keeps her weight in check.

Marie58

DH has always been super active; working out, lots of outdoor recreation and honestly never sat still. We used to tease him about being undiagnosed ADHD. Prior to his Dx, he developed a sweet tooth and ate lots of candy after dinner. After Dx, he slowly became less active, had to retire early, and just sat around more. He gained about 20 pounds, even though we got the candy binge under control. I didn't worry too much as I knew he'd eventually lose weight. He's now thinner than I've ever seen him in 44 years. He's so thin it makes me cry sometimes.

RobertsBrown, your research is interesting. I never tied his weight gain directly to the dementia itself, although it did change his diet and activity level.

mommyandme (m&m)

I’m lurking on this wonderful spouse or partner forum.  I’m in awe of how you handle caring for your spouse or partner. Totally different animal than caring for my parent.  I don’t think I could do it and hope I don’t find myself in your shoes too. (Hubby’s not looking)  You are all amazing. 

So my mother has always been petite yet with many battles with food and weight.  She gave my siblings and I quite the food issues in life. Love/hate food relationship for me, forever.   Anyway, mom is heavier than I’ve seen her in my life even though she’s still “small”…It’s actually made it difficult to care for her in ways.  So much so that I will not allow myself to be a heavy weight burden for any caregivers in the hospital or at home.  

We must take care of ourselves now because we never know when/if we’ll be in this situation, being cared for, for whatever the reason.  And it’s just a good idea for our mental and physical health, of course.  

Keep up the honorable and good work! 

Ed1937

mommyandme (m&m) wrote:

I’m lurking on this wonderful spouse or partner forum.  I’m in awe of how you handle caring for your spouse or partner. Totally different animal than caring for my parent.  I don’t think I could do it and hope I don’t find myself in your shoes too. (Hubby’s not looking)  You are all amazing. 

Most people who have a spouse who is fighting dementia, become their caregivers. Most children are not caregivers for their parent. You're pretty awesome yourself.

mommyandme (m&m)

Ed, thank you!

Arrowhead

I think it is probably just part of the progression of the disease. My wife has the opposite problem. She eats a lot, more than I do, yet she has lost a lot of weight. She was always a bit on the heavy side, and she gained some after we got married. We started dating at 17 and she weighs a lot less now than she did back then.