Assisted Living?
Question : Assisted Living?
Well, after months of discussing assisted living with my grandparents and visiting the facility we finally got them moved in. They loved it the first day. We came to visit everyother day. Now it has not even been a week and they told us they hate it. She cant move back into her house because they both have dimensia and he had a stroke. He was overdosing and skipping his medication at the house. Last night we dropped in to say hello and make sure they had some ice cream and she just yelled at me. My sweet little 80 year old grandmother told me that she hates me and she is moving back into her house and I can stay the hell away from her. Of course this made me cry which she just said “Why is she crying?” She thinks he agrees with her that they should move home, but she cant understand what he is saying either. They will have to be split up if they leave and he will go into a nursing home. She has lodging a complaint and wants a lawyer. What do we do?
assisted living
Best answer:
Answer by free_angel
Inform the place your grandmother is threatening to leave. Insist that they put her on an elopement risk list. Raise wholly hell with them if she gets out without anyone knowing about.
Dementia is a miserable condition which affects everyone involved. She is like my Aunt who, in the first stages of dementia, decided to go to an assisted living home in 2006. She was fine for awhile and then decided she didn’t like it. She said some very cruel things to my mother, who was recently declared her legal guardian and fudiciary. She still says things that she cannot recall later and tells things that are untrue about others. Very upsetting.
There is no way that she can go home again. She was even getting into the fuse box and flipping switches and got lost once. She did not take her meds right either. So now, at the home, she gets up in the morning and packs because she is “leaving” and every evening she unpacks. We all visit her as often as we are able, but she has her good days when she seems almost normal, but other days are bad and hard to watch.
They did tell us at the home that dementia can be like that and not to ever take it personally.
What to do in your situation? I would check with their doctor and begin trying to have them declared incompetent. You know they can’t possibly go home again at this stage. Pick someone very responsible to be the guardian if you don’t want to do that yourself. Then that person should apply to be appointed. I don’t recommend letting a guardian be appointed for them if you can keep it in the family. You know them and have their very best in mind. You, or a relative, can act in their behalf better than anyone, but choose them very well.
As far as the complaint and lawyer, I don’t think it will fly considering the state that both are in. Speak to the doctor as a first step. And know that she means no harm to you no matter what she is saying. She didn’t understand why her words hurt you enough to make you cry. We all have a hard time when someone gets older and we have to be on the receiving end of it. Just love them as long as you have them.