My dad with Alzheimer's wants to drink and smoke badly! What do I do?

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alisonouchna Asked December 2011

My dad with Alzheimer's wants to drink and smoke badly! What do I do?

Dad quit smoking years ago. Now he wants to smoke cigs and is searching the house and everything in it for a smoke. He even tried to light a dog treat to smoke it because it looked like a cigar.... His caregiver smokes but she does it outside. He has asked her for one and she does give it to him, but now he wants them BADLY!

He was also quite the drinker before his last hospital stay, but now has been sober for almost 3 months and still wants his drink. No one has even come close to giving him one.

I think he is bored out of his mind without his drinking and he is now sleeping a bit more because of it (during the day)..

What does one do in this situation? Let him smoke when there are people around or completely cut it off so he doesn't want them more and more? Does one even give him a sip of wine at dinner or will that cause him to really really want it more??

I want him to be happy, content, not bored. But I don't want him to be a drunk smoker who lights the house on fire.

Anyone dealt with this before? Advice?

Thanks!

Ali

Alzheimer's & Dementia

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score 0 · Answer 1

They do sell Blu-cigs at Walgreens which are already to vape.

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score 0 · Answer 2

I think the Safety Cig or similar would be great, but they are all so darn complex. The guy can barely take a shower let alone change a cartridge/plug in the cigarette, etc...

Any other options??

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score 0 · Answer 3

Thanks, angrydaughter. That is good to know.

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score 3 · Answer 4

E cigs are battery operated so there is no risk of fire.

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score 0 · Answer 5

I wouldn't worry about nicotine at this point in his life. But the risks of fire associated with smoking are a serious consideration. I'll bet that would be the same with a "safety cig."

My husband's doctors have approved 2 alcoholic beverages a day for him. (He has dementia.) He never was a problem drinker, and that might make a difference.

I share your attitude. Dementia is slowly or not so slowly robbing these men of one small source of pleasure after another. We want to keep them safe, of course, but we don't want to unecessarily remove some of the pleasures they still have left.

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score 0 · Answer 6

True they sell Odouls non alcohol beer and a safety cig that only lets out moist air.

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score 1 · Answer 7

You can try the e-cigs that are on the market. They only have nicotine and you feel like you're really smoking. I have The safe cig. Also you can get him fake beer, just pour it into a glass. They sell it in supermarkets. It taste like the real thing.

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score 1 · Answer 8

They go back to what they know. Try the nicotine patch to see if it eases his desire to smoke. If not let him smoke. I recently placed my fathers girlfriend who is 75 in a nursing home. She would rather smoke than eat. She has very bad behavorial problems if she does not get to go out at least 5 times a day. She was a heavy drinker but does not drink any longer. Look, the disease is going to take him soon and he will not even know what a smoke is. Give the guy some enjoyment while he can still have some.

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My dad with Alzheimer's wants to drink and smoke badly! What do I do?

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