When Caring for a Parent with Dementia is Too Much.
According to the Alzheimer’s Association, approximately 15 million Americans care for an elderly family member that has dementia or Alzheimer’s. Yet the truth is, caring for someone, even if you love them deeply can be tough. At times, caregivers feel as if they cannot bear the burden any longer of assisting their loved ones. It is at this point that adult children have to make a huge decision, whether or not their parents need assisted living care.
Making the decision to move your parent into an assisted living facility such as Landmark Senior Living is never easy, but failure to do what’s best for everyone involved could hurt them more than it helps. If you’re wondering whether it’s time to place your parents in an assisted living facility, listed below are some surefire signs that the answer is yes.
- Wandering – As dementia progresses so do the risks involved with this disease. Wandering off becomes more frequent. It gets to the point that every time your parent is occupied, they end up wandering off somewhere. If you’re working a regular job, you cannot leave your parent at home alone or they’ll wander off potentially getting into a lot of trouble.
- Sundowner Syndrome – Is your mom or dad okay in the morning, but as the day progresses, they become more agitated and confused? This is known as sundowning, which is a condition directly related to dementia. This is when their mood and confusion get worse as the day goes on. This can take a toll on the caregiver emotionally and also upset daily routines.
- Increased Aggression – Those who suffer from dementia are often confused and as a result, they become very angry. They can often become both physically and verbally abusive. This can be rather disturbing and hurtful to you, and if you have younger children, it is a behavior in their grandparents that they won’t understand.
- Home Safety Issues – Does your parent have a hard time getting around the house? Do you find that they are falling more or getting injuries without knowing how they happened? If you’ve tried to safeguard the home for your parents to no avail, it may be best to put them in an assisted living facility where someone can monitor them more frequently.
- Escalating Health Needs – As your parents age, their health will likely decline, causing new issues to arise frequently. If your parent now suffers from other medical conditions that make it even more challenging for you to care for them, it is time to get some help. This is also true if you now have health conditions that will hinder you from taking care of your parents as you once did.
- Caregiver Stress – Do you feel tired and rundown all the time? Do you find yourself unable to handle matters that were once not an issue? Are you irritable, aggressive, or even depressed? These are all signs of caregiver stress and may symbolize that you need to get help caring for your loved ones.
Caring for your parents is something you knew you’d have to do one day, maybe you just never imagined it would be this challenging. If you’re caring for a loved one with dementia, you may need to consider enrolling them in an assisted living facility where they can get the care that they need.
