We are at the mid-point of Dementia Awareness Week and it seems an appropriate time to take the bull by the horns and deal with two pressing issues.  Firstly, I need to encourage visitors to understand the condition a little more and help them become more dementia friendly.  Secondly, Maureen and I are both aware that her confusion about who I am is becoming more prevalent and needs to addressed

I made our day very busy yesterday by encouraging Maureen’s brother and his wife to come to Cleethorpes.  That resulted in a challenging afternoon and evening with both of us being totally exhausted by the time they went back to spend the night with Clarice, Maureen’s Aunty.  We went to bed together around 10 pm last night both worn out by the presence of three other people with their resultant constant conversation.  

Around 3.30 am Maureen woke up and said she ‘didn’t know who I was’ and wanted me to leave the marital bed.   I retired to the spare room with a throw away comment that ‘this was happening more frequently’.  Maureen replied that she ‘didn’t understand why this was happening’ and suggested that we needed someone to help us on this front.

I will approach taking the bull by the horns with caution – compassionate confrontation comes to mind.  It is time to discuss the best way forward with professional staff and fellow Care Partners: doing nothing is no longer an option.