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A Little Introspection

My therapist has suggested that I might find it helpful to be more open about my DH’s dementia and my own struggles as his caregiver.  She tells me that I need to let go of the feeling that I should carry this weight on my own.  I know I’ll find support here if I can just say what I feel, but I have a long history of glossing over troubling stuff … if I share it at all.

I wonder if much of my difficulty is simply the result of our having been a partnership for nearly all our married life, and now suddenly finding myself in charge.  One would think that this’d be right up my alley, since I’m such a control freak.  *rolling eyes*

We’re approaching the one-year anniversary of the day when I could no longer ignore the changes in my DH, when for the first time I realized he wasn’t always entirely sure who I was.  Those first months were chaotic as we got our legal ducks aligned and adjusted to what has become our new normal.  The “daytime me” is reasonably capable, organized, and calm.  I am still sometimes blindsided by some strange thing he might have said, but most of the time I’m able to treat him as I always have.  The “nighttime me”, when the rest of the household has gone off to bed, is lonely, worried, and depressed.

Who’d’ve thunk our life could have changed so dramatically and so suddenly?

Comments

  • subversivevegan
    subversivevegan Member Posts: 29
    25 Likes 10 Comments 5 Insightfuls Reactions 5 Care Reactions
    Member

    I'm so sorry you are having such a hard time - and boy, I can really relate. Making all of the decisions is nothing anyone truly wants, yet here we are, making monumental (often life-changing!) decisions without our trusted other half having a say.

    I don't offer much except my empathy and the support your will find among the wonderful folks here.

  • SSHarkey
    SSHarkey Member Posts: 298
    Sixth Anniversary 100 Care Reactions 100 Likes 100 Comments
    Member

    I can so relate. Married 551/2 years. And I feel him sliding away emotionally. Gets lonely.

  • M1
    M1 Member Posts: 6,788
    1,500 Care Reactions 1,500 Likes 5000 Comments 1,000 Insightfuls Reactions
    Member

    Thirty years for us....and yes, it's a huge change.

    you're not alone in your struggles. Best thing about this forum, it has kept me sane through some very tough times. We get it and share the same issues, the same losses. I hope it does help you to know that.

  • trottingalong
    trottingalong Member Posts: 433
    Eighth Anniversary 250 Likes 100 Insightfuls Reactions 100 Care Reactions
    Member
    edited April 23

    34 years here. I sympathize with you and understand what you are going through. I’m very capable of taking care of things but boy it gets lonely. I miss my best friend that I could tell anything to. Now I think before I speak. It’s not easy sharing with others, besides here. I tend to gloss things over or say a little something about whats going on at home, testing the waters. Seeing what kind of response I get. Most often people are uncomfortable and dismiss it as age related or change the subject all together. I’ve always been the cheery one. People don’t care for the one that gets depressed or quiet.

  • Belle
    Belle Member Posts: 124
    Tenth Anniversary 100 Comments 100 Care Reactions 25 Insightfuls Reactions
    Member

    Over 30 years here and the frog in boiling water concept is so true. I pushed reality away until I couldn't do it any longer and it became painfully obvious that something was very, very wrong. I also am finding it difficult to talk to people about DH and about how I'm coping.

    I'd rather avoid people then try to explain and have that information result in people drifting away because our reality is too scary for them to think about. My feeling is that even if I did share more info it wouldn't really make things less worrisome or scary to think about. Maybe I'm just projecting but most people don't seem to want to hear about these situations unless they too are caregivers.

    I do see what your therapist is saying though but maybe we are just dealing with anticipatory grief and I'm not sure how sharing about caregiving helps us get through that. Feeling pretty cynical today, DH Is having a bad week, so take what I say with a grain of salt but if you do share and it relieves some of your burden please come back and let us know. I hope you can find some way to relieve some of the pressure on yourself.

  • annie51
    annie51 Member Posts: 160
    100 Comments 100 Care Reactions 25 Likes First Anniversary
    Member

    Dear HangingIn, I can relate very much to what you're saying. You slowly lose your partner, your best friend, your lover and the relationship becomes something very different. My DH was the decisive one, I was always the wishy-washy one, so making big decisions is not easy for me. We always made decisions together so I try to "involve" him, but sometimes it's an exercise in futility. I try to at least make him feel like he's part of it. It's a hard road and we can certainly empathize.

  • HangingIn
    HangingIn Member Posts: 27
    10 Comments 25 Care Reactions First Anniversary 5 Likes
    Member

    Thank you all so much for your kind words. I haven't dealt with this very long compared to many of you, but it feels like a lifetime. Each of you has expressed something I've felt at one time or another, and you've helped me realize that no matter how alone I feel, alone is one thing I'm not.

Commonly Used Abbreviations


DH = Dear Husband
DW= Dear Wife, Darling Wife
LO = Loved One
ES = Early Stage
EO = Early Onset
FTD = Frontotemporal Dementia
VD = Vascular Dementia
MC = Memory Care
AL = Assisted Living
POA = Power of Attorney
Read more