Mom lost 6 pounds in the past two months.
I took Mom for a checkup today. She is down to 90 pounds, BMI 16.5 and blood pressure at one point was 84/50 and then 70/44. She is skipping breakfast, not even making herself coffee. She goes without food from 5pm dinner to lunch the next day at noon,(which she barely eats) and unless she eats a few spoons of yogurt or sips of ensure she starves and dehydrates (I provide snacks all the time because she doesn't know enough to go to the lunchroom to ask). The doctor is going to try Megace to increase her appetite. AL will have to administer it, and maybe they will be more aware she is not eating considering she lost all the weight on their watch.
I'm taking her to the audiologist next week. Even with new hearing aids, we have to scream to be heard. I guess we will find out then if she has just lost her comprehension, or there is something wrong with them.
I'm doing what I can, but I am so glad she is in AL now.
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You can make your own decisions, but it offers information that may be helpful.
avoidablecare/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Sharpe-Handbook-A-Caregivers-Guide-to-Advance-Dementia.pdf
I have a link that I would like to provide you for an article written my doctor on those caring for dementia patients. I'll have to make sure it's okay to post it first though. I'll return and post the link if it's okay.
I hate to keep repeating myself about Cymbalta, but that med really helped my cousin. Without it, she is nervous, worried and distraught. She has just gone back on it and I hope works this time. When she was on it previously, she was so content. She seemed satisfied with her daily activities and always had a smile on her face.
Why not discuss a med that could make her more content? Depression can cause weight loss. It's amazing that she is able to live so independently with dementia and her advanced age.
Yes, she is mobile, gets around with a cane, dresses herself, etc.
The doctor just wants to keep her comfortable. The way she is now, perhaps its better if she just stops eating and continues to fade away as I hear it is natural for seniors to do that and its painless. She is miserably unhappy, confused, weak, almost deaf and her dementia is progressing quickly. I hate to see her suffer mentally.
My loved one has lost 10 pounds in 2 months, but she eats fine. I asked doctor about it, and he was not concerned. She's in a wheelchair, but has enough energy to propel herself around.
Does your mom get up down unassisted? I couldn't tell if she is in Assisted Living. She has her own fridge? With my cousin's AL they would insist that all residents go to the dining room for 3 meals per day. The meal is placed in front of the resident and they can eat or not. Snacks are brought to their room or wherever they are in the facility.
I think the AL got a wakeup call with a 6 pound weight loss in only a few months and hopefully they realize they should be checking on her more in the morning to be sure she eats something and making sure she doesn't put her lunch in her purse and hide it. She is only allowed to miss one meal a day, but not eating in the morning (because she says she doesn't feel good to go to breakfast) is unhealthy because it means she is 19 hours without food or drink. She lies and says she has eaten but in truth, all she would eat is 2 spoons of yogurt and a couple sips of ensure and that's if she remembers to eat at all. She tells me she has eaten cereal, but the box is unopened and so is the milk a week later.
At almost 101, the doctor said although we can't make her change, if we can get her to eat a little more it will improve her quality of life, she will feel better and she won't be so weak.
You may want to talk to your doctor about considering an antidepressant. Mirtazapine, or Remeron, also stimulates appetite.
With those blood pressures, first, be very forthright with AL staff about postural hypotension, which is a sudden drop in BP when you stand up. It carries a significant risk for fainting and falls. I'd really put the fear of God into them about this if you can-- a fall could be pretty bad at this point.
And your doctor should be looking at a possible medical cause for the cachexia (the low weight). In terms of how you, and AL staff, deal with your mom, knowledge can be a powerful thing.
And finally, if diabetes isn't a problem-- sweets, sweets, sweets, sweets. And I'm not just talking about Ensure. McDees shakes are my favorite. But also ice cream, pudding, whipped cream. As people age, they often lose their sense of taste and prefer sweets. Calories are probably more important than nutritious kale right now. (And you can steal pudding cups too! When my dad was older, I did it all the time. Personally, if you haven't had pudding for a while, I recommend tapioca.)