It's ALL she talks about. It's paid off, but now she won't even 'be quiet' (aka: shut up) long enough for me to even ask what other things she needs (like writing checks or getting her groceries - she says "there's no point since I'm being evicted.....then gets mad because I don't believe her and hangs up (eye roll goes here).
"Wow, mom! When did you find out? Do you know how this happened?" Insert any conversational variance here. And then...."Try not to worry, mom. I'm always here for you. Let me see what I can do to head this off. I'll make some calls."
In other words, it may help you be able to move on with your conversation if you ACCEPT what she's saying and offer reassurance.
Now. The bigger question is how are you preparing to handle your mom's deteriorating mental health?
It is so hard dealing with the negative. I hear "no" so much around here that I wish they would strike the word from the vocabulary. One thing I've learned, though, is my mother may say no, no, no to me, but yes to someone else. Do you have a brother or uncle who could encourage her to follow-up on her treatment for hyperthyroidism? Sometimes women will listen to men when they won't listen to other women.
It's pointless to argue with someone who has diminished capacity. If you are someone who makes it a point never to lie (my affliction), you will have to suck it up, and tell fibs compassionately.
Bless all..
Lois
Cue: hollow laughter from 28,000 people (at a guess). Yes. It is maddening. No one will give you any arguments there.
What we're trying to explain is that there are specialist techniques for dealing with this kind of obsession that may be more effective than the ones you've tried so far. Give them a go.
I would read as much as possible about dementia and watch the link provided. The dementia patient is not being difficult on purpose. There brain is preventing them for behaving normally.
It could be that her problem is reversible, as mentioned upthread. Get her thyroid checked. I would explore that possibility, but keep in mind that it could be a symptom of an illness that you can't cure and one of the trademarks is difficult behavior. I would try to acclimate myself to getting on board with how to deal with her or make arrangements for someone else to step in. It sounds like you might be overly frustrated, which is understandable, but that isn't likely to work well in the long run.
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