Did an event occur that decided this for you? I feel like I might be so close to the situation that I may try and bury my head in the sand and become locked into denial. I was wondering what I should watch for, or what your own experiences have been. Thanks
Mother with dementia moved in with my sister and brother-in-law. They did a wonderful job of caring for her. After about a year Mom had a series of acute illnesses that made her care much more demanding, and she began having issues during thenight. Sis decided she could not continue in the primary caregiver role. The rest of us got busy finding a care center. We found something sooner than we expected (a nursing home). There are now three shifts of staff to respond to Mother's needs. And oddly enough, she seems more content there. I think she always felt a little bad "imposing" on her children and she is more comfortable with people who get paid to help her.
Angels, just keep in mind that the caregiver's needs have to be taken into account.
Angels, my dad didn't have dementia, but the final straw that sent him to skilled nursing was when he couldn't get himself up off of the toilet, his legs were too weak. At that point, he went to the skilled nursing part of the facility where he and my mom live and he passed away three months later from his lung cancer.