Tag: dementia medication

Managing Medication and Pill Aversion

There seem to be two kinds of people in this world. One that uses medication and appreciates the benefits, and the other that has a general aversion to taking medication.

I fall in the second category and was happy when the one prescribed medication I was taking (a baby aspirin/day) fell out of favor. Well, I suppose there was the science to it, but when my doctor said to discontinue taking it, I was happy to comply.

I see many people struggle with medications, including those with no cognitive issues. I think it’s too easy to miss a dose and think pill caddies are helpful solutions.

A reader asked if there were any simple books for medication management for someone diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. While I’m not trained in health management, from the brain health training I have done, I do know that starting a new habit is difficult for someone diagnosed with any form of cognitive issue, include all dementias.

The bubble packs are dated and have time stamps that are easy reminders to follow and track.

There are two simple options to help manage medication as well as see if and when someone has missed a dose. The first is the pill caddy and the second is bubble packs. For anyone with more complicated medication scheduling or a lot of pills, the doses are packed with dates and times and come on a roll or in a blister pack.

I always consider options that give an individual more control over their life. I think those two options are helpful in managing medication and provide simple cues on when to take and if a dose was missed.

For those that are averse to medication, but diagnosed with something that medication can prevent or abate, I hope family and loved ones will speak up and help the individual understand the choices they are making and the potential risk to their health. One of the entitlements of being American is that we are given the opportunity to make really bad choices for ourselves. However, when it comes to our health, sometimes our spouses, siblings, and friends need to recognize that someone diagnosed with a cognitive issue might be unable to make a reasonable choice. The act of not taking that medication might result in a need for a higher level of care or other health complication that requires medical intervention or nursing care.

I hope if you have someone in your life in this second category, you will at least share your concern and give them the opportunity to explain their choice. Once diagnosed with any form of dementia, I see many deal with loss after loss. They have lost friends who fell away, the ability to perform at a job they loved, and even just manage the simple act of cooking a meal. Is the refusal to take the medication one place that gives them a sense of control? Wondered.

What I Wish I Knew When Dementia Was Diagnosed: The role of Palliative & Hospice Care (#2)

Palliative-vs-HospiceMy parents and in particular my Mom often shared that QUALITY of life was her goal, not QUANTITY. After a diagnosis of dementia which can result in death, I had an ongoing struggle with what was important to do to honor my mother’s wishes.

The lines between “palliative care” and “hospice care” are confusing but they both focus on providing comfort. Palliative care can begin at diagnosis, and at the same time as treatment. Hospice care begins after treatment of the disease is stopped and when it is clear that the person is not going to survive the illness. These lines are kinda blurry with dementia since there really is no “treatment” or “cure” (YET). 

I wanted to manage and strive for quality of life, keep Mom comfortable, but be mindful that we were not providing things that could extend her life.

When Mom started to refuse to take the anti-anxiety medication the care community was delivering, I realized that it was being delivered with a host of vitamins. Was it important to give my 80-year-old mother a multi-vitamin?

My Mom didn’t really like taking pills, so delivering 4, of which one was really important to minimize her stress became the only one I asked them to deliver. I followed up with the doctor who agreed that the other pills were not really necessary and her medication regimen was updated.

When Ensure was recommended as an addition to her meals, I asked more questions to make sure it wasn’t been forced or delivered as a meal replacement over providing her with food options she would still eat.

Apparently dementia and age can impact your taste and there seemed to be a strong preference for salty and sweet foods. She was never much of a salad or veggie person and it seemed odd to start worrying about nutrition when she often couldn’t remember names or faces. I didn’t want her to be hungry, but I also wanted to let her have some control even through her diagnosis over day-to-day choices.

My toughest challenge was when her hip broke and the doctor insisted we lift the DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) order for her so they could repair her broken joint. At 83 and very frail, there was no way she would have survived the surgery and they agreed to move her into Hospice Care. Over the previous year, she had been in and out of Hospice Care as she continued to weaken. However, with the addition of the broken hip, we now had the option to keep her comfortable with morphine that would eventually end her life.

These were difficult and guilt-inducing decisions, but I always worked to meet what I believed to be my mother’s wishes. Knowing these options may not just better serve the comfort, but also allow you to focus more on enjoying time with your loved one than managing medical matters.

Would the vitamins and Ensure prevented the eventual hip break? I will never really know but after caring for two parents now realize how important it is to let the will of the individual influence their daily choices, even after a diagnosis of dementia.

You will have a lot of options and choices to make over the course of your journey. Just know you will make the best decision you can with the information you have at the time you need to make choices for your loved one. Hospice can be a valuable option during your care journey. Reminded. 

 

Dementia and it’s troublesome sidekick Anxiety

anxiety

The speed at which my Mom could bring me into her anxiety was one of the most alarming shifts in our familiar dynamic. Growing up, my mom was the calm, low-key fixer. In the military life in which I was raised with a dad that was often gone, mom ran the household and raised four kids. She was as adept with a hammer and nails as she was with a spatula and pie pan. So when I started to get panicked calls from her, I usually found myself jumping in a car and driving over to visit. I figured it was now my turn to be the fixer.

There were a lot of personality changes over the years, but the anxiety was one of the issues that troubled me most. I learned when she was anxious how to not join her where she was and redirect to a calmer option. I learned to not disagree or debate what she believed, but also not join in the alarm. In the beginning, I would just excuse myself for a few minutes so I could reset my demeanor. Later, I would suggest something we could do together that would change the setting and take her focus to something else.

Puzzles were a regular feature of mom’s room in Assisted Living. The simple act of setting it up, finding a piece or putting it away always brought calm. When it was nice, we would go for a walk in her community, and some days we just got in the car and would complete a simple errand.

The “therapeutic fibs” are often recommended for those that can’t break the cycle of anxiety they are in. I really struggled with this idea initially but found that the truth teller in me was not helpful in many situations. The most difficult were my mom’s calls about dad being in the hospital and needing a ride to visit him after he died. Neither of us needed to relieve his death over and over and I found the suggestion of a visit to dad calmed her down and let her focus on what to do before I would be coming over.

As a last resort they may prescribe medicine that can help. There were several times in the early days when the doctor encouraged us to use the Ativan she prescribed. When the Life Care Community my parents lived in forced their migration from Independent Living into Assisted Living, I dissolved the pill in a glass of Coke. I started out offering the medication to her, but she was suspicious and would refuse any medication. It’s kind of humorous to me now to tell you that she was so anxious, she wouldn’t take the pill that would help her anxiety, but that was our reality.

Dementia is hard on more than just the individual diagnosed with it, and because our loved ones are usually unable to adapt to the changes happening in their brain, it’s up to us to adapt to help them. Encouraged.