Update on Mom

Got to talk to Dad last night, and he was in a better state of mind and was able to fill me on all that's going on from the beginning.

I guess Monday was a really bad day for mom. She spent the better part of the day having hallucinations, which is part of this stupid disease, and she started to pick on Christy about her scottie dog, and dad tried to get mom to leave her alone, and she turned around and punched him. His lip got split open. Dad says from there he doesn't remember what happened, but Christy had come out of her room and started screaming, because dad had mom pinned to the ground. Dad said he doesn't remember if he hit mom back or just took her down, and at that point he knew he couldn't take care of her anymore. So he called Pat Christensen, who then called mom's doctor, who in turned called dad, and told dad to take her to the mental hospital in Carson.

They had a very tough time getting mom in the car, it took dad, Pat, and Christy to get her in. And as they drove, she got even more upset and violent, so by the time they got to Carson, she was out of control, then when she realized were she was going, all hell broke loose. The doctors had to sedate her, and she finally fell asleep in the bed, and they were able to get her out of whatever she had been wearing and into a hospital gown.

The doctor at the hospital told Dad and Christy not to come on Tuesday, so they could get her settled down and evaluate her better, but they went and spent yesterday with her. She was still pretty much drugged, so there was no violence, and Christy did her hair and painted her nails.

The psych doctor wants to meet with dad, Christy, and me if I can get there today to discuss mom and where to head next. Dad has pretty much made up his mind that she's going into long term care, but the doctor wants to fill us in on how bad she really is, and what we can expect in the next days, weeks, and months. They didn't give dad a time when they were going to meet, so when dad does find out, he's going to call me and let me know. I hope I'll be able to make it down there.

Dad doesn't think she's going to last much longer. Funny thing is, she could. Some times alzheimer's patients can live for 20 years with a crazy brain. Hopefully she does go fast though. For her sake and ours. She would never act this way in her right mind, and it would kill her to know she is acting this way. She loves my dad so much, she would never do anything to ever hurt him mentally, physically, or otherwise. The way she is acting in just a ruined brain, and she doesn't know what she's doing.

Anyways, the big thing for dad is to decide where to put her-Carson, Reno, or Yerington. And a lot of that will depend on price. He's heard that the monthly cost on those long term care places can run anywhere for $3000 to $5000 a month. He can only just afford that, if he lives on the bare minimum himself.

This will all be stuff we have to work out as a family. Dad said Elaine is coming up this weekend and next weekend. Christy is here through the weekend, so Dad is going to be alone next week. Keep him and mom, and us kids, too, in your thoughts and prayers.