Evelyn
2010-12-07 11:40:02 UTC
Hi all,
I have been checking in on this group from time to time, and there have been
no new posts with the exception of a few cross posts.
How is everyone?
As an update, my father has dementia now, but it is vascular dementia, not
true alzheimers.
His doctor has him on a very small dose of Aricept, which helps a little.
He is obsessed with small things, and very paranoid and difficult to deal
with. My sister and I went to an elder law attorney to discuss the
situation, and we need to somehow get him to provide one of us with a POA.
My father is not interested in doing this, which could create a very chaotic
situation if his illness advances further, as it inevitably will.
There is a type of POA which ONLY kicks in if two doctors say the person is
not capable of making his own decisions. We are hoping that he can be
persuaded to sign this one. We will have to pay the attorney to draw it
up, and my father would be the client whom the attorney is representing in
this process.
Should that fail, we may have to go for guardianship.
We are waiting a little longer, since he is presently hanging on OK, but
that could change at any minute. He's 97 and will be 98 in a few months.
Why oh why are people so sure they will live forever and not want to assure
their loved ones that they can make necessary decisions for them if
circumstances warrant it?
My mother in law was just as bad. She hung on until the situation became
very critical before she realized that she needed paperwork in place to
protect her interests and make decisions for her.
I guess nobody ever expects that they will develop dementia, but the actual
numbers don't support that.
Best Regards,
Evelyn
In the stony fastness of the mountains there is a strange market, where one
may barter the vortex of life for boundless bliss. – Milarepa
I have been checking in on this group from time to time, and there have been
no new posts with the exception of a few cross posts.
How is everyone?
As an update, my father has dementia now, but it is vascular dementia, not
true alzheimers.
His doctor has him on a very small dose of Aricept, which helps a little.
He is obsessed with small things, and very paranoid and difficult to deal
with. My sister and I went to an elder law attorney to discuss the
situation, and we need to somehow get him to provide one of us with a POA.
My father is not interested in doing this, which could create a very chaotic
situation if his illness advances further, as it inevitably will.
There is a type of POA which ONLY kicks in if two doctors say the person is
not capable of making his own decisions. We are hoping that he can be
persuaded to sign this one. We will have to pay the attorney to draw it
up, and my father would be the client whom the attorney is representing in
this process.
Should that fail, we may have to go for guardianship.
We are waiting a little longer, since he is presently hanging on OK, but
that could change at any minute. He's 97 and will be 98 in a few months.
Why oh why are people so sure they will live forever and not want to assure
their loved ones that they can make necessary decisions for them if
circumstances warrant it?
My mother in law was just as bad. She hung on until the situation became
very critical before she realized that she needed paperwork in place to
protect her interests and make decisions for her.
I guess nobody ever expects that they will develop dementia, but the actual
numbers don't support that.
Best Regards,
Evelyn
In the stony fastness of the mountains there is a strange market, where one
may barter the vortex of life for boundless bliss. – Milarepa