Support Group

Last night, I went to my first meeting at an Alzheimer's Caregiver Support Group. It was definitely a good, but humbling experience. I guess the hardest part was looking around the room and seeing that there was only one person under 40, other than myself. I was listening to everyone talk and they all seem to be taking care of someone 80 and over. My Mom is just barely over 70. I guess it just hurts to know that she's losing her memory so young; and everyone around me had more time with their loved one, as they knew them, than I did. I think it's good to keep going and listen to the stories of other people. Some of them were truly heart-breaking. It was also hard because a lot of the people were in the place I was in 2 years ago (and even 2 weeks ago), where they are trying to get their loved one to move from their home to a facility or care home. 

There was a point in the meeting where the facilitator was talking about Caregiver burnout, guilt and stress. I started crying and found it really hard to stop.

Mom is having a hard time adjusting to her new board and care home. She's definitely butting heads with the weekday Caregiver, who I'll call Serena. I think it's because they are so much alike in personality. They are both strong-willed with strong voices. Also, she likes the place, but it's really hard on her that she can't go out for walks or that she doesn't really have much socialization there. I'm applying for a spot at the Alzheimer's Activity Center, but that takes a little while. You have to get a report from the doctor and such. Thankfully, we've already gotten the TB test. Hopefully, I can get what I need soon. In the meantime, I'll take her out whenever I can.

Tonight, I decided to do what people call a "Pop-In" at the board & care home. That's when you show up when no one knows that you're coming. When I got there, Mom was in tears. She was all upset because Serena put too much spaghetti on her plate, and she couldn't eat it all. She thought Serena was going to yell at her for not eating everything on her plate. She, clearly, needed to be distracted, so I took her out to a local shopping and dining area. We took a nice stroll, then went to a bar & grill and shared a plate of sweet potato fries and got lemonades. It's amazing how happy that made her.

Finding the Fun:

1. Strolling around the stores and window shopping with my Mom. She was so amazed at the things they make now.

2. Finally hearing her truly laugh, after weeks of missing that sound.