My mother in law was diagnosed with Alzheimers in 2006. I remember her saying, "I am just going to forget about it"! It wasn't until 2009 that we decided we had to move my husbands parents from Florida to live with us in South Carolina. My mother in law put something in the toaster oven and forgot about it, almost burning down the house.
I think I worried more about my children than anything else. Was this really the right thing to do? Was this going to be too tough on the kids? How would it effect them?
Amazingly they have been wonderful through it all. I think having them with us, while we ride this long roller coaster of a ride, has helped keep things a bit lighter! They help keep everyone laughing and are always hugging and kissing their grandmother (Mee Mee). Like the time she put a pot in the microwave to heat something up and sparks were flying, my son stopped her and said, I did that one time too. Don't worry about it. They have been very compassionate to her. Though I know deep down it is difficult for them to watch their grandmother not beable to make them a pizza or do the simple things they used to do when they were younger.
Things have changed dramatically in the past couple of months. Mee Mee gets a bit more agitated, she cries a lot and she is losing interest in going anywhere, to even come out of her bedroom, except to eat, which she does often because she forgets that she already did. We have spent days trying to find things that she has miplaced, sometimes finding them in the refridgerator. A sort of treasure hunt, my kids say!
I did not realize how difficult this was going to be, emotionaly and physically. The hardest part for me is the depression that Mee Mee is going through, she knows that she is losing her mind and it is killing her. I wish I could stop it for her. Her grandchildren have been the light of her life and her face brightens each time she sees them. I am grateful she is with us so that the kids can be with her while she still remembers them.
Thank you to my children, Austen and Hanna for helping me keep things light. I know it's not always easy!
