My mom has EOAD… need advice/support

I'm so sorry. This is such a lonely journey and even more so when you and your mom are so young. I'm in my 40s and I feel too young to be going through being a caregiver!

Personally I would try to make sure your focus on your studies and career goals and personal life. Alzheimer's is such a terrible disease and unfortunately it's totally devastating to your moms life and you of course will have grief and hardship but you have a life to live now and also when your mom passes.

People your age probably won't understand. I remember being in my mid 20s and having a friend on her early 30s whose mom had early onset and as empathetic and compassionate as I wanted to be, I truly couldn't understand what my friend was going through.

I'm so sorry that life has dealt you and your family this tough hand.

So sorry about your Mom. We understand what you’re going through. There are 7 stages of dementia. If your Mom is late 6/early 7 you can ask for a hospice evaluation. Hospice nurses can answer any questions you have. Here’s the DBAT tool for staging: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/6372d16ea4e02c7ce64425b7/t/63f7b80d80d8aa3e3aa4a47d/1677178894184/DBAT.pdf

@ellac1105

Hi and welcome. I am sorry for your reason to be here but pleased you found this place.

Dementia sucks, but EOAD is just next level awful for those touched by it.

Your question is not inappropriate. As caregivers we need to pace ourselves to get through this which is hard given the unknowns. Generally speaking, EO does tend to progress more rapidly than in those whose symptoms appear in their 70s or after. That said, PWEO seem less likely to be presented with an "exit ramp" which is to say a medical event that hastens the disease progression or causes death before the dementia reaches end stage.

As the aunt of two nieces who lost their mother at 14 and 11, I feel for you given the ambiguous loss you've already endured and well as the very real missing piece that will be a part of every milestone of your life going forward. A therapist has been helpful for both my nieces in this regard. The older one found this book helpful; perhaps you might at some point.

In addition to this place, there is a group dedicated to those whose lives are touched by EOAD. You might want to check that out as well.

HB

My heart breaks for ellac1105 and family. You are being strong and brave. I can only imagine your pain as a young daughter. The suggestions provided here seem helpful. Thank you all.

My mother was diagnosed with Dementia when she was 78. She is now 84. I just left my job, sold my house, left my adult kids, and grandkids - to move to another state (north to south) in with my parents to care for her; and give dad (85) a break. He has been her primary caretaker to date. It was weighing him down.

As far as the paperwork goes for the DPOA, we lost this window to have mom do this. We are looking into guardianship. My problem with all the paperwork that is needed to provide care, and have access to resources (use of day facilities and such); is that no one told us to get paperwork in order 6 years ago when she was diagnosed. It wasn't until we looked into caregiving services in home, that we understood how this paperwork is a requirement in most cases. There needs to be a more streamlined process for helping families know how necessary this paperwork is. in my opinion, the doctor that does the diagnoses should also educate the families of the timeliness of getting the paperwork in order. The last thing we want to do is have to go to court to obtain guardianship. But at this time, it's our only option. My prayers go out to everyone navigating in this unexpected time.