One thing for sure being a carer where dementia is involved you can be called into action at any time of day or night.  It is never a good idea to take your eye of the ball or take 5 minutes for yourself.  Get it wrong and you will find yourself in all sorts of trouble.  I will give a couple of examples that make my point….

M had slept for most of Saturday morning and I manged to coax her downstairs with the promise of lunch.  She decided to follow her GP’s advice and walk around the garden to try to relieve discomfort in her left leg.  I carried on with preparing lunch.  As I popped something into the oven I thought I saw her pass by the kitchen window.  A few  minutes later I checked on her whereabouts and she had gone.  I had left the back gate open and she had scarpered.  Panicking I just caught sight of her disappearing round the corner.  Then ‘should I shouldn’t eye’ came to mind.  On previous occasions she had always found her way back home: sometimes with the help of the Local Constabulary.   Panic took over as I remembered it was Carnival Day and if she got caught up in that lot she could be a gonna.

Thankfully I made the house safe and drove off in a flash to find her.  Unfortunately, I am advised not to run since bilateral hip replacement.  I caught her some distance away and hailed her with: ‘hey blondie your chips will be burning.’  She said she was pleased to see me as her feet were hurting.  Not surprising really: odd trainers on both on the wrong feet.

At lunch time today I noticed M’s blood pressure tablet still on the dining room table.  She had forgotten to wash it down with morning coffee.  She washed it down with ice cream as she demolished her sweet.  No real problem there, except that when it is time to take her blood thinner this evening she may genuinely believe she has already taken her daily medication.  I simply have to be more vigilant on this front.

The rituals around bedtime can be taxing.  Hunting for missing items is frustrating particularly when you have had a long day you but unless I pull myself out of bed it could be expensive.  If M has returned downstairs to top up her water supply for the night it is likely to look like Blackpool Illuminations with lights left on.  It is also worth doing a final, security check just to be on the safe side.

The point I am making is that I have to be constantly on my guard.  My ability to doze off at will is risky particularly as the condition progresses.  When M can wake up at any time not knowing: who I am; where she i;s and what time of day or night it is – then I think you might just get the picture.