Maureen has woken frequently from 1 am asking if it is time to get up.  Beth Britton has just blogged on dementia and sleep disturbance: her post along with ideas from the Unforgettable Team has provoked thinking on a number of fronts as I try to improve our sleep patterns.

There is no Bank Holiday for Care Partners with our Agency because they are not able to provide ‘sits’ at these times: so Chloe was not with us yesterday.  That meant disruption to our normal routine and vigilance from your truly throughout the day.

I made a mistake late afternoon that led to Maureen taking a significant nap until early evening.  If I had helped her with a clothing crisis she may have not got upset and retired to bed.  Then I made another error by not joining her in the ‘land of nod’ and have paid the price of exhaustion.

Today gives us a chance to get back into the old routine providing we can overcome the ‘no Mary syndrome’; with a new face here today and another on Thursday.  Tomorrow throws up another vagary with my away day in Coventry when Maureen will be supported with wall to wall care around her son’s six hour stint.  Just to be on the safe side I will check in with the Agency this morning to make sure everything is in hand.  Things could have gone pear shaped with Natasha the Calls Coordinator for this area having terminated her employment on Friday.

There is a lot going on in the next few days and it could well take a few days until we settle back into the old routine: we should be so lucky with dementia calling the shots!

Postscript: I just caught Maureen a couple of streets away as she tried to scarper.  There was i thinking she was happily putting the washing out and off she trotts: you need eyes in the back of your head with that woman.