My mother in-law is in the latter stages of dementia. It is a confusing and horrific thing for family and friends to deal with. For the people that have it (in our experience,) most of the time do not seem to be bothered.
It also is not linear; we have found that when she does not understand why she does not remember something or someone, she makes up a story (or multiple ones that change) about what happened or who that person is. For a while, she thought my husband was still in high school and living with her. She felt she was away from home and would call every night to check on him. When she asked who he was with, he would say me. She thought that was perfectly normal, even though we did not know each other when he was that age (lived in different states and I am five years younger.)
Right now, she goes back and forth with remembering that she has children, but even when she does remember that she has three sons, she does not see to understand what it means to be a mother anymore.
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2021-03-23 10:27 am (UTC)It also is not linear; we have found that when she does not understand why she does not remember something or someone, she makes up a story (or multiple ones that change) about what happened or who that person is. For a while, she thought my husband was still in high school and living with her. She felt she was away from home and would call every night to check on him. When she asked who he was with, he would say me. She thought that was perfectly normal, even though we did not know each other when he was that age (lived in different states and I am five years younger.)
Right now, she goes back and forth with remembering that she has children, but even when she does remember that she has three sons, she does not see to understand what it means to be a mother anymore.