Holiday insurance and dementia problem.

[picklemepopcorn]

I know you will appreciate my quandary. DM has last minute booked a holiday, without consultation with anyone. It leaves this Friday.
It’s totally unsuitable. 🤐🤯

Can we cancel and get it covered by insurance? I’m concerned about her wellbeing as it’s an arduous trip. She also can’t actually get to it, at the moment.

I think she would cancel if she thought she’d get her money back.

Any ideas or wisdom from previous experience?

She’s 84 and may or may not be suffering dementia. Which she may or may not have declared when she bought her annual travel insurance a year ago.

I don’t know. We don’t have PoA.

Any idea where I can go for help? AgeUK will be my first phone call.

Yes, we are just docking now. First dock.

Oh your mum told me about a daughter, I'm not sure which one it is. Definitely you mum as she had her hair up the way you said, and very well dressed.
I don't see her during the day only at night at dinner.

This has turned out to be an amazing thread. What a coincidence that the OP’s DM and a MNer are on the same cruise!

This is just great that a mnetter happens to be on the cruise and can keep an eye out! Good old mumsnet, I bet this will be a massive help to the OP

I’m the daughter with the more unusual name, @GreatTheCat ! Should names crop up. The baby of the family 🤣😁.

One of the sisters used to Foster. I don't know if it's you.
I think I saw her getting off in Haugesund.. Not sure as I was far away.

That’s me. It’s a little weird, but very reassuring, as is seeing the ship on Cruisemapper. She didn’t make it to the EE shop to check what her sim allows her to do in Norway. To be fair, she only generally gets in touch when there’s a disaster. She likes to get away from it all when she’s on holiday.

Have a fantastic time, GreatCat. The fjords are so spectacular- serene and majestic. And I hope the aurora does its thing, too. And the whales- I hope they come and play on the bows!

I've only just found this thread but I'm invested now.

I bet your mum doesn't realise that you're tracking the ship and that you have someone on here who has identified her.

We’re not breaching privacy, @TheShellBeach! I’m just sleeping better at night knowing she’s safely on board and managing. Beforehand she panicked so then I panicked! She is blessed with the ability to let go and move on, while I continue to fret! I swear she copes so well by transferring her anxiety across to me! 🤣

I've got to say I'm loving this thread, the power of mumsnet!

Loving this thread!

Sorry, I wasn't accusing anyone of anything!

I think it's great!

🤣🤣

‘s Ok, @TheShellBeach - it is a bit weird, and I’m trying hard not to put Cat in a tricky position.

And I don’t want to infantilise Mum, or go behind her back…and I don’t want Cat to spend a moment of her holiday catering to someone else’s elderly parent!

In fact it’s just a bit of a minefield.

Someone said to me today that our parents can reach an age where we need to parent them, before they are willing to be parented. I thought that summed it up really well.

Mum has a rich, challenging life full of complexity. She really struggles to manage everything she does, while absolutely refusing to make any changes. If I lived nearer, I’d be expected to take on all the challenge and complexity to enable her life to continue unchanged. Meanwhile I organise my life for maximum simplicity as I have a chronic illness and have to be very careful about stress. I work, do church and do health focussed stuff. That’s it. I curate my life to make it manageable.

Mum is the opposite. She would never let sense and moderation cramp her style- her determination overcomes every obstacle! Though often only with my assistance 🤣

Saw her again tonight sitting at my table, she was deep in conversation with a fella. They are large tables with 12 around it so I couldn't talk to her much. She looked fine and dandy though (C).

Loving this thread :-)

Thank you! She’s a feisty little Welsh dragon!

Saw her again tonight sitting at my table, she was deep in conversation with a fella

Oh you lot!!

So she went out on a trip today.

She was sitting one away from me so we chatted a bit. Her phone is EE and it's an 8 of what ever brand it is.

A cruiser came up to her and said she like her hair and she would like to do her hair like that - she told her that her hair is too short!

She went to see a show last night and fell asleep during it - so was awake by 4am - she rang guest services to have them wake her at 8am!

She was in good spirits tonight!

Oh I am glad! You seem to be having good weather as well- I was afraid it would be stormy and freezing and she’d be miserable!

Sounds as though she’s having a whale of a time though.
Thank you for the update!

She seemed good tonight.. She found a ramdom lady from Norway we show her around town. She did 30,000 steps apparently. Lol.

Has she been diagnosed with dementia. And when was the holiday booked. If you had cancelled immediately you realised the holiday wasn't suitable and shouldn't have been booked in the first place I think you would have a chance of a refund. Maybe try and have a word with her GP express your concerns and see what they advise.

She’s a phenomenon all of her own, for finding people to help. And indeed has great ability for things to somehow magically work out.

Are you having a good time, @GreatTheCat ? Is the food good and so on?

Love the MN "spy" on the cruise ship !

Have you RTFT?

Were going to Tromso now instead of the island (which I can't remember except it starts with L). Good for me because I really wanted to go.
Haven't seen mum today as I've been in bed all day!! We are on a sea day.

Food is good and Alta tomorrow!