Taking care of an elderly parent has it joys as well as challenges, especially if they have Alzheimer’s or some other physically or mentally debilitating condition. If your mother or father is still in their right state of mind and can get around independently then everything should be okay. However, if they have something like Alzheimer’s then things can be very demanding.
The pain of their memory of you coming and going is very hard to live with as well as the constant asking some of the same questions over and over again after you had just answered that same question just a few seconds earlier.
If you are single and trying to take care of your parent alone then the challenges are twice as hard for you if they have Alzheimer’s that is. If they are in a good state of mind then you have, someone there with you to talk to and to keep you company. One the other hand, a couple with children has each other to lean on and that in itself can cause a problem. The stress of taking care of an aging parent can add stress to the marriage if said parent again has Alzheimer’s. Having said that, a parent that is that is in a good mental state can teach the children about their heritage, who their great-grandparents and so on and so forth.
Having your mom or dad live with you can also cause problems between you and your spouse in the fact that, say for example you are disciplining your child and your parent does not like what you are doing, they may interject their feelings, and that will cause problems between you and them as well as you and your spouse.
You really need to think long and hard before taking on the challenge of caring for your loved one. Also, you need to think long and hard before placing them in a nursing home. In a nursing home, they can be abused physically, mentally and or sexually. That is not to say all nursing homes are like this nevertheless a good many of them are. If you do make the decision to place your parent in a nursing home, in order for them not to be mistreated someone needs to visits them quite regularly. Visit everyday if possible, if not at the very least every few days and at different times of the day. That way if there are any employees at the nursing home who is mistreating patients your loved one will not be one of their victims. Because they will not know when someone may pop in it see your loved one.
If you do suspect abuse, report it. Report it to all who will listen, the nursing staff, the police as well as other family members. The more people visit the safer your loved one will be. In return, you may be helping someone else’s family member in the process from being mistreated by some cold-hearted person, who likes to prey on the weak and helpless.