Caring for elderly parents; Dad with dementia
This is a great forum and I am starting a thread that may seem to touch many lives and I ask for any godly advise and support as we go through this...
I am a survivor of abuse; my father was very "stern" with me being the eldest daughter and "strong willed" and in Aug 2007 my husband and I took in my mom and dad; sold their house (the home I grew up in) and have managed their health care totally since then. They are both 84.
My father was behaving toward my 7 yr old son the way he treated me as a child. This was very triggering to me and much prayer enabled me to get through these times to see clearly and speak with him about his behavior toward our son. He exploded on Wednesday night last week. On Saturday, I took them both to the emergency room for psych evaluations and Dad was diagnosed with dementia and they saw the serious implications of him living with us and the unsafe atmosphere for our son. Dad has been in the hospital since then and yesterday a family meeting was called and they strongly suggested placement in an Alzheimer's facility; thankfully we have a VERY good one very close to us; a few miles away. My older brother and younger sister are very supportive; since neither of them were able or willing to care for them (sister is 30 miles from us and brother lives in NC).
Personally, I am beat. I am angry that I didn't have a "daddy" and that I was put in this position to care for him and then him behave this way and then have to go to live somewhere else. This is really a big deal for me. I look forward to having my home back with just Mom, she is great and a little forgetful at times but nice to have around. She became very stressed and thought she was "losing her mind" with the care and demands that my dad placed on her every minute. Mom has been with us since June 2007 while dad was having surgery and in rehab.
Just rambling but comments, suggestions and prayers are very appreciated. This is a hard time; a time when I cry out to God and ask "why"... I will trust Him to get me through this...
This is a great forum and I am starting a thread that may seem to touch many lives and I ask for any godly advise and support as we go through this...
I am a survivor of abuse; my father was very "stern" with me being the eldest daughter and "strong willed" and in Aug 2007 my husband and I took in my mom and dad; sold their house (the home I grew up in) and have managed their health care totally since then. They are both 84.
My father was behaving toward my 7 yr old son the way he treated me as a child. This was very triggering to me and much prayer enabled me to get through these times to see clearly and speak with him about his behavior toward our son. He exploded on Wednesday night last week. On Saturday, I took them both to the emergency room for psych evaluations and Dad was diagnosed with dementia and they saw the serious implications of him living with us and the unsafe atmosphere for our son. Dad has been in the hospital since then and yesterday a family meeting was called and they strongly suggested placement in an Alzheimer's facility; thankfully we have a VERY good one very close to us; a few miles away. My older brother and younger sister are very supportive; since neither of them were able or willing to care for them (sister is 30 miles from us and brother lives in NC).
Personally, I am beat. I am angry that I didn't have a "daddy" and that I was put in this position to care for him and then him behave this way and then have to go to live somewhere else. This is really a big deal for me. I look forward to having my home back with just Mom, she is great and a little forgetful at times but nice to have around. She became very stressed and thought she was "losing her mind" with the care and demands that my dad placed on her every minute. Mom has been with us since June 2007 while dad was having surgery and in rehab.
Just rambling but comments, suggestions and prayers are very appreciated. This is a hard time; a time when I cry out to God and ask "why"... I will trust Him to get me through this...