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Elderly parents

Advice needed

5 replies

Zaraaddict · 09/02/2026 13:56

I lost my 81 year old mum in Dec she was killed by a hit and run driver .. I was on holiday at the time and so was my older brother both of us in the uk
I arrived home to my 83 year old dad and my 26 year old son who had identified her .. I can’t remember much of that night .. so when my brother said he was leaving to go back on holiday it didn’t register .. I stayed with my dad .. fast forward 9 weeks and my brother hadn’t got involved with my dad much .. took him for Xmas day lunch while I lay in my flat processing the loss of my mum .. alone I’ve never been home since that day as my dad is angry devestated and unable to cope
he’s diabetic .. won’t eat or drink when he should , refuses to take meds unless I give him them , when I say I need to go to my flat he says he’s dizzy and unwell
He refuses to change clothes or wash much
I’ve taken him to GP to try and get some help he gave him some anti depressants maybe to early to make a small difference ..
yesterday he decided he wanted a shower shut and locked the bathroom door on me before I could get in and ended up falling and
flooding the house as the water was genuinely running through the ceiling and down stairs . I had to call my brother to come and kick the door down .. he’s taken him home to his house as I’ve said I can’t cope any more as I have a heart complaint snd he’s pushed me too my limit
theres been so much bad behaviour from my dad and I’ve done my very best to feed him lovely meals .. and care for him totally and give him love
I suppose I’m just wanting someone to tell me I’m not a bad person
I’m the only female in a male heavy family
even my own boys don’t seem keen to help
i know my dad won’t have carers am I unfair to want to split the care .. my brother seems horrified that I suggested it

OP posts:
ChapmanFarm · 09/02/2026 14:05

I suspect your brother's views will change when he's experienced a couple of days of the care load. Perhaps it's best just to say you need a break for now and then you'll discuss it in a week or so.

You can't go on like this. It may not seem like it now but things coming to a head is good.

If your dad requires care you are going to have to have a proper conversation about what that looks like. If it is more than one person can reasonably manage (and it sounds like it is) then you are at the stage of either home help or residential care.

You have a home of your own and can't abandon it indefinitely so you cannot be the long term solution.

I found it useful when someone said to me that professional care allows you to be a daughter again and restoring that relationship, rather than it being that you are failing them in any way.

Edited to say it's pointless forcing your brother to agree to share care if he can't actually deliver on it as it will still be on you.

OLDERME · 09/02/2026 14:12

You have done more than your best....too much really. Withdraw from all care and decisions until you are feeling better. It's only my opinion, but one person can only do so much. Take care.

JoyOfSpecs · 09/02/2026 14:44

You are not a bad person. Quite the opposite. You've been a wonderful daughter and done much more than anyone could hope for for your day.

You cannot carry on like this.

It is time to look after yourself now. Take care of your health.

REP22 · 11/02/2026 15:32

Just to echo what others have said really. Step back, for your own sake.

You are not a bad person. You are a lovely person who horrible things have happened to. I am so sorry.

Quite possibly your own boys don't want to get so involved as they see how much your dad has hurt you, now and over the years, and they love you best and want to try and defend you from it, in their own ways.

He is in your brother's house now, so let your brother be the one to manage this. He can arrange ongoing care and future needs from his house. If your father needs to go into residential care for his own wellbeing, so be it. You can contact Adult Social Care in your area and ask for a welfare referral, citing the many safeguarding concerns you mention in your post. You have no obligation to agree to anything. Believe me - it will break you if you try to do this alone and under the circumstances and experiences you have - if you were to take it all on it may even be that your father ends up outliving you - I can feel the despair in your post and it's heart-breaking. You do not have to carry this burden.

Your dad can choose to return to live in his own house, with crises after crises. That's his right. But he then also has to accept the consequences of his choices. You do not. If he chooses to do things his way, however unwise, you can choose not to engage or enable the folly. Or do it at arms length - there's a flood, you can ring the plumber, but you won't go round to spend another evening mopping on all fours. He refuses to eat or drink or complains if you're going to leave? "That's your choice dad. Night night."

You cannot set yourself on fire to keep another person warm - even when that person is loving, compliant and appreciative, which is sadly not the case here. Your father has reached a stage where what he needs now outweighs what he wants. What he needs is a team of trained, professional people who can care for him safely and properly round the clock, not one single lovely but woefully unappreciated lady who has suffered terrible grief and is being unravelled piece by piece with unrealistic demands, guilt and torment.

Your life matters too. You deserve a happy life.

Have a look at the Cockroach Cafe in the Elderly Parents section of MN - lots of good help and advice there. Also the Stately Homes threads for children of difficult parents. You might also like to visit Out of the FOG - Index for support on dealing with the fallout of bad parental behaviour. It haunts many of us.

I'm sorry about what happened to your mum. That's horrible. I wish you and your sons happier times ahead. 💐 x

rickyrickygrimes · 11/02/2026 15:52

Your dad is at your brothers place? Excellent. Pack up, go home and don’t leave until other care arrangements have been put in place.

it’s not bad behaviour from either of you. But you cannot care for an ill, angry, grieving man while you have to grieve and care for yourself.

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