Big hug for you JMT..... Dementia is tough for sure.... My mom became combative at times as well

I had a doctor put her on Haldol which helped almost right away however there are potential side effects to it

Have you looked into some Community Care where you are?.... I would ask her doctor if you can be referred to a social worker.... There may be some help available to you

Also the Alzheimer's Assoc may have some help, respite available? possibly....

I'm in Canada however it's worth looking into what support might be available for you.... Gentle hug and a blessing.....xo

Hi JMT,
It is not easy, to keep a smile on your face while serving.In the difficult times look deep into her eyes.Eyes are like the ocean.You will see lifetimes gone
her childhood,her youth,her young adult life while she was swimming.Now
she is at this phase unable to do it on her own, in her same ocean dont let her
drown, love you

Thank you. I have tried to talk to he r, and the funny part is that I think we are mirror images. We are both very much the same, only I have the strength and youth still. I think that is hard for her, because she remembers and won't accept that her life has changed.

Thank you. Doctor's have brought it to my attention to seek outside sources. Mom, is very adamant that she can still be alone, and not real receptive. I did ask her primary care for an evaluation of her cognitive competency, but she is dragging her feet with that. There is some guilt on my part. Doctor's suggested leaving her for a day at a care center so I can clean her house. She was a terrible hoarder. It is not working so well with me alone trying to help her clean it out. Truth is it would take at minimum of more than two weeks!

She is sick do you have any other siblings or relatives that could assist you with taking care of your mother. Also I would seek some kind of out side assistance from the community. You should also find some time for yourself, you are dealing with a very stressful and frustrating situations. I do not you exact situation but I am also taking care of aging parents. They both have dementia so I just hug them and make sure that I tell my parents how much they have meant to me and my sibling and I always tell them how much I live them. With the keys I would get a couple set made and leave them with a relative or friend that stay near you and your mother. She is not doing these thing on intentionally.

If she is pretty competent there isn't a lot legally unfortunately that you can do....

I used to get the guilt as well.... I wanted to be able to make everything "fine"

Try and remember the words of the Serenity Prayer..... They're the wisest words that I think I've ever heard whether no matter what you believe in or not

'accept the thing's I cannot change.....change the things I can..... and have the wisdom to know the difference'

Unless and until she is deemed a risk to herself or others she has the right to make her own decisions even if they're lousy decisions

It is hard..... You can call a community care agency in your area as well and ask for a psych assessment.... This might be a possibility

I used to work in community care here and I've had psych assessments done on people living alone and it takes a lot to have someone's rights taken away even when they're making unhealthy decisions and are obviously confused

Hoarding may help adult protective services step in.... If she's a bad hoarder you could always report it and it may get the ball rolling to get her help

I know this is very hard..... Big hug and a blessing.....xo

As for the key thing, sounds like you need to keep your keys on your person at all times. In my observations, this is kind of a man-woman thing. Most men I know keep their keys on a key ring in their pockets, and most women I know tend to put their keys on a ledge, or some other place when not using them.

So sorry for your struggles. I doubt I could cope with combativeness.

Stay safe. Stay strong.