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Thank you Mary Ann for your helpful input below. Were you able to care for Jamie yourself? Did you have help come in? Would you share specifics about the toileting program? I am working full-time these days and gone mostly during the day. I just started this position last November. We need the money and my position has brought me much joy and satisfaction. We have home health care come in 5 days a week and they stay an hour and provide physical therapy(2 days) or help him shower and dress(3 days). He also gets meals on wheels for lunch during the work week. All the helpers always check on him and if he doesn't answer the door, they call me and let me know. I'm not sure how much longer he will qualify for home health care. The guidelines say he must show signs of improvement to continue in each 60 day benefit period. He has had home health care the last eight months. Our 21 year old son lives at home and home offices his insurance business, so his dad is often not alone too much during the day. I found a young lady yesterday that is a delight and lives a mile away and will maybe(hopefully) be around for a while. She came over yesterday for a few hours and will come again today. Thanks again for sharing your thoughts... Patti cg On Mar 18, 2010, at 7:30 AM, Mary Ann Ryan wrote: > Alzheimer's dementia is unremitting. Once it starts the person > never reverses. In PD the dementia gets worse and then gets better, > gets worse - then better. In my husband's case, it didn't > completely overtake him, although he never completely returned to > normal. We could still talk about what happened yesterday or last > week - in snatches. > > Ultimately, it seems that death occurs in similar fashion in both > diseases. My husband slept most of the day during his last months, > totally lost his appetite and merely slipped away. He never lost > his ability to swallow - although that is a common problem in end- > stage PD, as it is in Alzheimer's. > > Incidentally, with a proper toileting program my husband was > continent to the very end. > ------ > Mary Ann > www.bentwillowfarm.org > >> Hello Mary Ann >> >> What's the difference in symptoms btw PD dementia and Alzheimer's >> dementia? >> Thanks >> >>> Patti, Aricept has mixed results - some people do well on it while >>> others >> don't notice a difference. Our neuro refused to prescribe any >> dementia >> drugs for Jamie because he claimed that they cause even more balance >> issues - so I have no personal experience with that group of meds. >> >> Please keep in mind that depression is very common in PD - probably >> because >> there are a host of neurotransmitters involved in the disease. It >> isn't >> surprising that depression may result as a consequence. Please >> keep in mind >> >> that PD dementia is a lot different than Alzheimer's dementia. >> Even at the >> end of his life and despite severe dementia, Jamie still remembered >> who we >> were, where he was and what was going on in the world. >> >> Just continue to stimulate your husband's brain with puzzles, books >> and >> games. Social interaction is also very beneficial. >> -------- >> God bless >> Mary Ann (CG Jamie 68/28 with PD, died 11/20/07) >> www.bentwillowfarm.org >> >> ---------------------------------------------------------------------- >> To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] >> In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn >> >> ---------------------------------------------------------------------- >> To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] >> In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn > > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > > > > No virus found in this incoming message. > Checked by AVG - www.avg.com > Version: 9.0.791 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/2753 - Release Date: > 03/17/10 15:33:00 > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] > In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn