Agree that it's impossible to tell. Also agree that you would be best served to get help sooner rather than later.
If you don't need specific help with your wife yet, you could always hire someone to do the cleaning, cooking, shopping etc. If you can't leave your wife alone, hire someone a couple of times a week so you can get out by yourself for a bit and maintain some kind of a life outside the home for yourself. God for a walk, go to lunch with a friend, etc.
Gramps, there is no rule of thumb when it comes to considering a care facility based on the time a LO has spent at home. As for in-home care, you might start looking into that now. Many LOs living with AD live their entire life at home w/o having to be placed in a care facility. I always suggest caregivers educate themselves about the disease, which you apparently are already doing, and to know their caregiving limits. That is, how much longer can I safely and properly care for my wife before it affects my own health and sanity, or where I can no longer address her needs? Some things to consider are: Is her behavior unpredictable or violent? Is her behavior unsafe (leaves the stove on unattended) Is her care depriving me of sleep (she's awake for 24 hrs)? Does she wander (especially at night) Am I unable to continue to care for her because of my own physical limitations? If applicable, am I not able to stomach her incontinence?
One thing you don't want to do is to wait too long before getting help. Stress, anxiety, even hopelessness are some of the emotions a caregiver can experience if the caring gets to be too much. Call your local Area Agency on Aging (every state has one or more branches) to help access your wife's needs and help with recommending in-home care. You can also call your state Dept. of Aging.
There is no time line as such. Each person is different with how ALZ effects them. My Aunt lived over 10yrs after diagnosis. She showed signs before. She dehydrated herself a lot. Stopped worrying about how she looked, this was not my Aunt. Since her children didn't live close by, she went into an AL facility.
In my opinion, no one suffering from a Dementia should be left alone. Its too unpredictable. But that is your determination. Some can be left in a comfortable chair watching TV if ur gone a short time. Others try to cook and forget they left the pan on. In later stages they need help with dressing, bathing and toileting. For the bathing I hired someone. Wish I could have done that for toileting too.
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If you don't need specific help with your wife yet, you could always hire someone to do the cleaning, cooking, shopping etc. If you can't leave your wife alone, hire someone a couple of times a week so you can get out by yourself for a bit and maintain some kind of a life outside the home for yourself. God for a walk, go to lunch with a friend, etc.
Is her behavior unpredictable or violent?
Is her behavior unsafe (leaves the stove on unattended)
Is her care depriving me of sleep (she's awake for 24 hrs)?
Does she wander (especially at night)
Am I unable to continue to care for her because of my own physical limitations?
If applicable, am I not able to stomach her incontinence?
One thing you don't want to do is to wait too long before getting help. Stress, anxiety, even hopelessness are some of the emotions a caregiver can experience if the caring gets to be too much. Call your local Area Agency on Aging (every state has one or more branches) to help access your wife's needs and help with recommending in-home care. You can also call your state Dept. of Aging.
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In my opinion, no one suffering from a Dementia should be left alone. Its too unpredictable. But that is your determination. Some can be left in a comfortable chair watching TV if ur gone a short time. Others try to cook and forget they left the pan on. In later stages they need help with dressing, bathing and toileting. For the bathing I hired someone. Wish I could have done that for toileting too.