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Who are you caring for?
Which best describes their mobility?
How well are they maintaining their hygiene?
How are they managing their medications?
Does their living environment pose any safety concerns?
Fall risks, spoiled food, or other threats to wellbeing
Are they experiencing any memory loss?
Which best describes your loved one's social life?
Acknowledgment of Disclosures and Authorization
By proceeding, I agree that I understand the following disclosures:
I. How We Work in Washington. Based on your preferences, we provide you with information about one or more of our contracted senior living providers ("Participating Communities") and provide your Senior Living Care Information to Participating Communities. The Participating Communities may contact you directly regarding their services. APFM does not endorse or recommend any provider. It is your sole responsibility to select the appropriate care for yourself or your loved one. We work with both you and the Participating Communities in your search. We do not permit our Advisors to have an ownership interest in Participating Communities.
II. How We Are Paid. We do not charge you any fee – we are paid by the Participating Communities. Some Participating Communities pay us a percentage of the first month's standard rate for the rent and care services you select. We invoice these fees after the senior moves in.
III. When We Tour. APFM tours certain Participating Communities in Washington (typically more in metropolitan areas than in rural areas.) During the 12 month period prior to December 31, 2017, we toured 86.2% of Participating Communities with capacity for 20 or more residents.
IV. No Obligation or Commitment. You have no obligation to use or to continue to use our services. Because you pay no fee to us, you will never need to ask for a refund.
V. Complaints. Please contact our Family Feedback Line at (866) 584-7340 or ConsumerFeedback@aplaceformom.com to report any complaint. Consumers have many avenues to address a dispute with any referral service company, including the right to file a complaint with the Attorney General's office at: Consumer Protection Division, 800 5th Avenue, Ste. 2000, Seattle, 98104 or 800-551-4636.
VI. No Waiver of Your Rights. APFM does not (and may not) require or even ask consumers seeking senior housing or care services in Washington State to sign waivers of liability for losses of personal property or injury or to sign waivers of any rights established under law.I agree that: A.I authorize A Place For Mom ("APFM") to collect certain personal and contact detail information, as well as relevant health care information about me or from me about the senior family member or relative I am assisting ("Senior Living Care Information"). B.APFM may provide information to me electronically. My electronic signature on agreements and documents has the same effect as if I signed them in ink. C.APFM may send all communications to me electronically via e-mail or by access to an APFM web site. D.If I want a paper copy, I can print a copy of the Disclosures or download the Disclosures for my records. E.This E-Sign Acknowledgement and Authorization applies to these Disclosures and all future Disclosures related to APFM's services, unless I revoke my authorization. You may revoke this authorization in writing at any time (except where we have already disclosed information before receiving your revocation.) This authorization will expire after one year. F.You consent to APFM's reaching out to you using a phone system than can auto-dial numbers (we miss rotary phones, too!), but this consent is not required to use our service.
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Mostly Independent
Your loved one may not require home care or assisted living services at this time. However, continue to monitor their condition for changes and consider occasional in-home care services for help as needed.
Remember, this assessment is not a substitute for professional advice.
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Sitting on the pot for hours will harm her tissues and encourage hemorrhoids.
Make sure she is taking in enough liquid. Dehydration will stop you up pretty fast. Make sure she has enough fiber in her diet. Fresh fruit & veg or a supplement in water like Citracal or Metamucil. You will have to get creative to increase fiber and water intake when she probably doesn't want it.
Today, right now, call the doctor and ask what to do. Do not give her Colace or any other stimulant laxative unless the doctor says OK. Ask about an enema, glycerin suppositories, and probiotic supplements to keep things moving down there.
Her level of activity will have a lot to do with this. If she is sedentary, that will slow her bowels as well.
I am willing to bet she has an impaction now and when it dislodges you will want to make sure the house is covered in plastic. There can be softer/runny stool behind the impaction and she may complain of diarrhea because of that, but it is not diarrhea. It might be smart to get her in Depends garments and to never let her sit on anything that isn't covered with an absorbent disposable pad.
This kind of thing can require a lot of patience to see through, but don't give up.
Prunes! If she hates prunes, offer dried Apricots, they are yummy and they soften the stool. Get her to go for a 5 minute walk after meals, it keeps the gut moving.
This is our problem too. The only thing that works is to keep the stool soft so that there is no pushing required. As sandwich says, it's very important that she drinks enough. Changes to her diet like adding prunes or fiber may be enough, if not definitely consult her doctor before adding in stool softeners or laxatives. We had good luck for a long time using polyethylene glycol (Miralax) daily. And keep her on a schedule, encourage her to try to go at a set time each day, after breakfast is the usual suggestion. We've reached the point where she is now totally incontinent, but I would rather be cleaning up messes that dealing with a constipation or a blockage.
She's not constipated, she takes fiber everyday, and has a great appetite for plums/prunes, watermelon, veggies, dried beans etc. She won't push to urinate either. I'm sure she could drink more fluids if she would. She rides an elliptical bike every evening, that moves her legs and arms. She has a standing frame to help with standing. She exercises everyday. When it comes bathroom time she refuses to push. She thinks it's suppose to come out on its own or she wants me to get it out. I think she's through and more comes out. I wipe and wipe and wipe. She can go, she chooses not push. The dementia is probably playing a big role in this problem. She won't do it in a diaper, she wants to go to the bathroom. She thinks it should come out on its own!!!!
To put it bluntly, you may need to get it to the point it just runs out. The fact that the toilet paper is coming away soiled tell me that her rectum is probably full. How often does she go, and is she ever really emptying her bowel? My mom can't push and has absolutely no sensation that she needs to go. We have gone through h*!! with this, from laxatives to suppositories to digital stimulation. Believe me, it's no fun for either of us and we still have episodes where she has gone far too long without emptying her bowels. Of course your mom doesn't want to go in the pull up, and unless you are crazy you don't want that either. Unfortunately if you keep her BMs solid enough to prevent it you are probably going to continue having this problem.
My mother forgot how to push also. She had AD. Her nurse started her on "ClearLax" which, along with water helped it naturally just "fall out". However, that means it could just fall out at anytime so be careful!
I will agree that you need to work on keeping it soft enough to just come out on its own. It's a fine line and may have to be adjusted every day. A stool softener may help. Key is drinking enough fluid to keep the stool soft. Be careful with fiber supplements. They can cause pain, gas and bloating if there's not enough fluid. We use Miralax on an as needed basis, with stool softeners. This is all in addition to fruits and vegetables. Bran muffins may help. I hear Date Nut Bread is good. A hot beverage (coffee, hot chocolate, tea, cider) with breakfast may help get things moving.
By proceeding, I agree that I understand the following disclosures:
I. How We Work in Washington.
Based on your preferences, we provide you with information about one or more of our contracted senior living providers ("Participating Communities") and provide your Senior Living Care Information to Participating Communities. The Participating Communities may contact you directly regarding their services.
APFM does not endorse or recommend any provider. It is your sole responsibility to select the appropriate care for yourself or your loved one. We work with both you and the Participating Communities in your search. We do not permit our Advisors to have an ownership interest in Participating Communities.
II. How We Are Paid.
We do not charge you any fee – we are paid by the Participating Communities. Some Participating Communities pay us a percentage of the first month's standard rate for the rent and care services you select. We invoice these fees after the senior moves in.
III. When We Tour.
APFM tours certain Participating Communities in Washington (typically more in metropolitan areas than in rural areas.) During the 12 month period prior to December 31, 2017, we toured 86.2% of Participating Communities with capacity for 20 or more residents.
IV. No Obligation or Commitment.
You have no obligation to use or to continue to use our services. Because you pay no fee to us, you will never need to ask for a refund.
V. Complaints.
Please contact our Family Feedback Line at (866) 584-7340 or ConsumerFeedback@aplaceformom.com to report any complaint. Consumers have many avenues to address a dispute with any referral service company, including the right to file a complaint with the Attorney General's office at: Consumer Protection Division, 800 5th Avenue, Ste. 2000, Seattle, 98104 or 800-551-4636.
VI. No Waiver of Your Rights.
APFM does not (and may not) require or even ask consumers seeking senior housing or care services in Washington State to sign waivers of liability for losses of personal property or injury or to sign waivers of any rights established under law.
I agree that:
A.
I authorize A Place For Mom ("APFM") to collect certain personal and contact detail information, as well as relevant health care information about me or from me about the senior family member or relative I am assisting ("Senior Living Care Information").
B.
APFM may provide information to me electronically. My electronic signature on agreements and documents has the same effect as if I signed them in ink.
C.
APFM may send all communications to me electronically via e-mail or by access to an APFM web site.
D.
If I want a paper copy, I can print a copy of the Disclosures or download the Disclosures for my records.
E.
This E-Sign Acknowledgement and Authorization applies to these Disclosures and all future Disclosures related to APFM's services, unless I revoke my authorization. You may revoke this authorization in writing at any time (except where we have already disclosed information before receiving your revocation.) This authorization will expire after one year.
F.
You consent to APFM's reaching out to you using a phone system than can auto-dial numbers (we miss rotary phones, too!), but this consent is not required to use our service.
Make sure she is taking in enough liquid. Dehydration will stop you up pretty fast. Make sure she has enough fiber in her diet. Fresh fruit & veg or a supplement in water like Citracal or Metamucil. You will have to get creative to increase fiber and water intake when she probably doesn't want it.
Today, right now, call the doctor and ask what to do. Do not give her Colace or any other stimulant laxative unless the doctor says OK. Ask about an enema, glycerin suppositories, and probiotic supplements to keep things moving down there.
Her level of activity will have a lot to do with this. If she is sedentary, that will slow her bowels as well.
I am willing to bet she has an impaction now and when it dislodges you will want to make sure the house is covered in plastic. There can be softer/runny stool behind the impaction and she may complain of diarrhea because of that, but it is not diarrhea. It might be smart to get her in Depends garments and to never let her sit on anything that isn't covered with an absorbent disposable pad.
This kind of thing can require a lot of patience to see through, but don't give up.
Changes to her diet like adding prunes or fiber may be enough, if not definitely consult her doctor before adding in stool softeners or laxatives. We had good luck for a long time using polyethylene glycol (Miralax) daily.
And keep her on a schedule, encourage her to try to go at a set time each day, after breakfast is the usual suggestion. We've reached the point where she is now totally incontinent, but I would rather be cleaning up messes that dealing with a constipation or a blockage.