Two scary words = a frightening, life turning event.
You'll see them. The smallest things can become the biggest.
For instance... U.T.I.'s (urinary tract infections) If you are the caregiver of a parent with incontinence problems you will more than likely see these. Especially if that parent is a female. Typically women get these more than men to begin with but with the elderly that are incontinent you will see them more frequently.
The problem is... they aren't like they used to be. They have a life of their own. Where a woman used to know if she had a urinary tract infection because of the symptoms.. urge to go yet they don't have to; burning while urinating; painful pressure, etc.. an elderly woman may only display "confusion".
YES.... CONFUSION!
You won't get it... I don't get it .. but in the elderly, if your parent suddenly seems confused or has more confusion than the norm... get a urine sample done. As soon as possible.
What you need to realize is that every U.T.I. that they get is like a little assault on their brain.
Every little assault on their brain, remains on their brain. At their age the brain doesn't repair itself, doesn't bounce back like it used to. At first, with the first couple or few, you may not notice the differences but take my word for it, it happens. And there is no way to prevent the damage. And there is no way to fix it.
If you are lucky your Dr will prescribe an antibiotic to give them a few times a week only. Believe it or not this works for some. I know there is the old adage of not taking antibiotics unless absolutely necessary because you don't want to build a resilience to them but this actually works for some people in preventing them from coming fast and furious.
For some though, this preventative measure does not work. Your parent may never have had an urinary tract infection before then suddenly they have one. Then maybe 6 or 9 months down the line it happens again. Then yet again in 6 mths.. the times between may get fast and furious and each time you will see the confusion will add up.
The confusion has a life of it's own as well. It's downright bizarre. Your parent may be fine, completely clear headed for weeks then suddenly, like a light going off.. will get very confused. I have seen a frail elderly person get so combative that they actually strike out, or even bite! Yes, I have been bitten but not badly thankfully, no broken skin. I got my hand away in time.
Sometimes everything seems fine and then all of a sudden they will start talking like they've had a stroke. Just to be on the safe side, be sure it isn't a stroke. F.A.S.T. is an easy way to remember the sudden signs of a stroke.
F = face drooping (one side of the mouth may droop or may be numb - ask them to smile, is the smile crooked?)
A = arm weakness (is one arm weak? have them raise both arms, does one arm drift down?)
S = speech difficulty (is their speech slurred? Unable to speak or they're hard to understand? Ask them to repeat a very short sentence like "your eyes are green".
T = time to call 911 - if they display any of these symptoms
For my mom, she talks like an alien being at times. And a couple of times I did think stroke so got her to the hospital. Better safe than sorry. The faster you get to the hospital in regards to a stroke, the better off they are.
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