My Granddad has been diagnosed as having Demensia - i am very very close to my granddad and to say this situation has been heartbreaking is an understatement.
Basically it all started with little things he was doing like having his TV really really loud - he lives in a maisonette so is obviously unfair to the people who live above him - however, no matter how many times you asked him to turn it down he would always have it ridiculously loud - we got him a hearing aid fitting which he wont wear.........................there are lots of other things he has done to which we all just thought he was being lazy, not wearing his hearing aid etc.
For the last year he has been very unwell - he had a stint of 10 weeks in hospital due to bronchitis and secondary infections - being 80 this obviously hit him hard - he then went into residential care for a few weeks to be rehabilitated.
My mum deals with all of this herself - she has always been the apple of my granddad's eye and they are so close it is unbeliveable - my mum has a sister who lives about 200 miles away and 2 brothers - my aunt cannot help the fact that she lives 200 miles away but my so called "uncles" live less than 15 minute drive away and do absoutely nothing - they think because my granddad lives a few minutes walk from my mums house the she should deal with everything herself and it is taking its toll on her big time - she can't sleep from constant worry!
The Doctor and the top consultant for the eldery within our area have both diagnosed my granddad with Dimensia and advised he needs residential care - however, social services decided that the word of a doctor and senior consultant were not good enough and they didn't see my granddad's case bad enough to require residential care!
My mum has pushed and pushed and pushed until finally today he has been given a place in a residential home over the Christmas period - my mum is on holiday as of Monday and therefore wont be around, hence why she was pushing so hard for him to be put into some sort of care over Xmas.
She is now in tears as she has got to break it to my granddad that he is going into home - he has already asked her today if she is calling the police to come and take him away.
I don't really know why i am writing this but just felt like i needed to get it all out.
The home my granddad is going into in just behind my house therefore i can go and see him everyday and make sure he knows that we all still love him and just because he is in this place doesn't mean no-one cares about him anymore but i am absolutely petrified.
There is no way my granddad is being just left in this place without any visitors so i will go even if it kills me but i just know how horrible it is going to be - not only will i have to see my granddad there over Christmas without any family with him but all the only people with varying degrees of Dimensia - i just don't know how long i can do it for.
He is going in this afternoon so it looks like my horrid visits are beginning today.