Welcome to ALZConnected! You are not alone.

I did not write this. Another woman wrote it on a dementia site elsewhere. She nailed. Stages: STAGE ONE: new diagnosis: “ I have to get everything right! I need to help him in all ways! I need to be on top of this! Line up drs appts. Read everything I can, buy notebooks to record each day etc etc STAGE TWO: realization.…

As my DH continues to lose his ability to live in the world we used to live in, this is what I miss: Conversation that is without repetition and constant reminders of who or what we are talking about Living one minute without being vigilant Telling the one person (him) why I am sad, exhausted and hopeless Uninterrupted…

If I have to look for a facilities for my wife, where should I look? This is all new to me.

Michael keeps me update on the work of his team to improve care for dementia patients in hospitals. Here is the latest information he shared with me. https://alzheimersspeaks.com/its-time-to-improve-the-dementia-experience-in-hospital-settings/…

He fell at his MC facility early Saturday morning and broke both his hip and wrist on the left side. He had a total hip replacement on Sunday and the surgeon also set his wrist an put a cast on it. He has had an awful time and now is having a second surgery this afternoon; this time on his wrist. He pulled the cast off…

my mom has Alzheimer’s and lately she has started where almost everyone is a double person. You will be sitting there and she knows who you are but then she wants to know where her daughter (or granddaughter etc) went even though you are right there. This upsets her tremendously and worries about this person because they…

I have been my DH caregiver since February this year. This has been the worst time of my life. He is belly overweight and is constantly eating. I do feed him gourmet food. And he still eats!!!!!

What do I do when my wife considers our bathroom her house. I can't take a shower in there cause she get's upset with me. That's her place and her mother don't want me there. When I did take a shower ,she would take all the bed spreads off and throw them on the floor in the bathroom. She will start banging on the walls…

I have benefited so much from different posts I've read since finding this site. Until recently, I allowed my DM to hold on her debit card and credit card since moving into an IL facility. After reading horror stories of scammers, both here and in the news, mom consented to having me keep her debit card. I left her credit…

As I have mentioned before on this site, I assist an old friend (age 70) who has ALZ by taking them swimming a couple of times per week. Today, I started to enter one of individual family changing rooms because the "available" tag on the door indicated that it was unoccupied. A woman standing outside the door told me that…

Hi. I am new to this site. Actually I don’t know why I never joined despite my being aware of its existence. My father was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and quickly progressed in his disease. He was then diagnosed with Parkinson’s a passed December 24, 2021. This all transpired in about 4 years. After he passed my brother and…

Has anyone done a spinal tap/lumbar puncture recently to help diagnose (rule in/out) which neurodegenerative disease is affecting the patient? Our neurologist says the more advanced techniques are much safer, guided by x-ray during the procedure. I'd like to hear real life experiences. Reason for asking is that DH is…

Hello! My MIL has Mild Alzheimer's and at this time lives alone. We just started a caretaker 2x per week but she has meds she needs to take morning/evening. We are 20 minutes away with 2 kids in elementary school and sports. Any tips on what has worked? We have a regular pill organized but it isnt helping she is missing…

It’s been a day! And I’d just been saying how calm and stable things currently felt. Should have kept my mouth shut. Here are the days highlights… Filled the dogs water bowl in the bathroom but left it in the sink with the water running. I didn’t notice till two hours later. Asked him to “pick the tomatoes” and he pulled…

I read somewhere recently about something similar to a Caregivers Sundowning, might have been on this site. By the end of the day the caregiver is so stressed or burdened by all the things throughout the day they go through a mini episode. Big frustration, flash anger, emotional swings, irrational thoughts etc. The phrase…

I’m looking for some advice or to hear from anyone who has been through something similar with an aging parent or grandparent. My loved one is 80 and has been experiencing noticeable changes with her memory and behavior that have gotten progressively worse over the past year. It initially seemed like normal short-term…

Sunday is going to Church day for my Mother-in-Law which became my responsibility since my husband has a standing group bike ride. She has progressively not been showering. Her last shower was 1 week ago before church (I was able to convince her that day). Today I couldn't. She smells of urine and also had bowel…

I know people sometimes mean well when they give unsolicited advice. A long time friend has been messaging me videos of cases of elder abuse in nursing homes and telling be how wrong I am to have my mom in a MC AL facility. She says my mom is unhappy (she hasn’t seen my mom in years) and that I’m doing her a disservice. I…

It is absolutely ridiculous how many clothing items have been lost. I just brought mom 8 pairs of socks. She only got 5 back after they took them to mark. They have lost bras, pants and blouses. Mom is so frustrated with it she is actually try’s recording all the clothes they take in a notebook to try and keep track of…

For those who enjoy watching podcats, the Alzheimer's Association has a YouTube channel devoted to shows about Alzheimer's, lasting about 45 minutes each. The latest podcast was uploaded 12 days ago, titled "I've Noticed Memory Changes in Someone I Know. What Can I Do?" The next previous podcast was referred to as an Early…

Hello all! I will try to keep this brief. My mom was taken out of one nursing home without my consent back in 2021, and is now in a rehabilitation center as of April ‘26. I have POA since June 2020, but somehow non-family members allegedly have POA for 2026. I am my moms only blood family here and I need advice on how to…

I know that no one can answer this question but me, and I know there probably isn’t a “right” time, but it is so hard to decide when I feel selfish and guilty and all I can do is cry when I think about it. Mom is 96 and physically very healthy. She has dementia and she is legally blind. She has lived with me for over 2…

So my older sister (long-distance caregiver who visits every 1-2 months) just took my Asian mom to her first therapy session to work out the grief from my Dad's death (He died 13 years ago) and other emotional issues that fuel my mom's dementia flashbacks. We are going to do more sessions (virtually since I don't drive)…

My DH with dementia is driving me stark raving mad. Every single day, multiple times a day, I am looking for a dish towel or the sponge I use to wash dishes. DH takes them outside to dry. I have asked so many times for him to stop it, but it continues. That may sound petty, but add that to all the other things he puts in a…

Ive known for quite sometime now that something wasnt right with mom. Whether it was reconnecting all the connections on the TV and internet on each visit, fixing all of the clocks, and changing passwords to her accounts every other day. This went on for a few years. But then she hears her long time deceased parents in the…

She did not eat or take her medicine yesterday. I had the Dr. send a letter to us telling her to take her medicine. That did work before and now she doesn't want to take it. As far as eating, we always ate breakfast, lunch, and supper at the same time. I didn't want to change that. Then she didn't want breakfast and then…

My darling mom forgot who I was and it shredded my very fragile heart. She argued that she had never met me before moving into this "Facility." Keep in mind, we live in a house. She asked me of my ancestors. When I told her the names of my maternal grandparents, she got visibly upset. She said her parents never told her…

Hey all, I havent posted in a while here but wanted to get insight from other caregivers on when your loved one keeps having frequent falls. Background info is my mother has early onset alzheimer’s. Initially showcased symptoms in 2014 when she was 58. This past weekend she turned 70, and has been in a memory care unit for…

Newly diagnosed DW with moderate Alz insists she does not need help with her medications so I dont know if she is taking them. She is taking 6 different meds plus 2 types of insulin daily. The insulin is OK but not sure what she is taking otherwise. It triggers anger when I try to help and that is not something I want to…