Changes

We have had a major change within the household following Joy's recent illness. She celebrated her 89th birthday in bed with a virus which laid her low with no appetite and a degree of anxiety as she became more confused due to the dementia and exhaustion. As a result, on Monday Joy came to be with us and it is most likely she will now remain here as the independence she has enjoyed is outweighed by concerns for her health and wellbeing.

I can't pretend she isn't keen to get back to her own home, although her idea of what that is and where is very hazy, a cottage in the country or in fact just a place she has because they never had any money and could not afford their own home. It's getting back to that sense of familiarity I guess, even though she isn't able to say what that means. However, Woodlands is becoming more familiar to her and she is much improved since 5 days ago. She is eating and drinking again and has been doing her crosswords, playing scrabble and knitting. It's amazing how she has retained a good deal of her knowledge and understanding, getting crossword clues and being able to play scrabble with some degree of skill and competitively. 

It is going to mean a lot of changes for us and the constant care is going to be tiring. On the other hand she has been sleeping well, off to bed around 8pm and up after 9am. She's having little dozes during the day and doesn't need entertaining when awake. You can sit down and watch TV or read or get on with chores without having to interact but it isn't possible to leave her on her own just yet. That may come as she gets a little stronger. We will see.