Well, had my first time-ever- today. My Dad did not recognize me. He kept asking where he was and even while I would tell him, it wasn't sticking- at all. Last week he was no where near this confused.
I could only think that the infection is now doing its damage. Dad asked if other family visit him- he asked about "Mom and Dad" aka- HIS parents, visiting him. When I told him they had passed away better than 20 years ago, he wondered why no one told him.
No one can quite prepare you for that moment when your parent doesn't recognize you. I could feel the tears well up in my eyes, like a full feeling of disbelief. No matter what I said, he couldn't seem to find a file for me. He thought I was his sister.
Saying good bye like this rips a little of your heart each time. Joe Klein of Time magazine wrote an article in the June 11th issue about managing his own parents old age issues. It's a good article to read if you can get a copy. He also had the double-dementia challenge.
So, more to come.
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