MIL VERY strong unpleasant smelling urine..

[Ccoffee217]

..and wets herself.

Hi all, just some ideas really, MIL has mental health problems and is unhygienic, she wets herself a lot and the smell is horrific. The family are very conscious of saying anything to her as she is very sensitive and there's been suicide attempts in the past (another story)... but I just wondered if anyone knew if this could be her medication or whether she could have a real problem going on?

Sounds like she has an infection. Can she see a GP as a matter of urgency.

Agree, she needs to be seen. Could well be an infection.

Yep, could be an infection, best get it checked!

She needs it be seen by her GP. How long has it been, is it a day or two, a week, months?

Yes as above
Could also be causing her to be incontinent/making that worse. But can be caused or exacerbated by poor personal hygiene. Can you get a sample to get checked at the GP.

To not it. Stupid phone!

It could be medication but I’d be ruling out an infection first of all.

Definitely sounds like she has a UTI.
Try and get her to drink plenty of clear fluids but not tea or coffee and ask a doctor for antibiotics if required. Is she confused at all? Confusion can be a sign of a UTI in older ladies.

Absolutely get her to the GP as a matter of urgency. This isn't just an unpleasant inconvenience, an infection can lead to all sorts of major problems.

This happens to my DM on an almost weekly basis. She refuses to be washed and won't attend to her own hygiene, she won't drink, her urine is very dark and with an offensive odour. She is dehydrated and gets UTI's all the time.
DSis and I try all sorts to get fluids into her with minimal success.

A lot of elderly women avoid fluids because their bladders are weak. It is a vicious circle.

She is dehydrated and gets UTI's all the time. DSis and I try all sorts to get fluids into her with minimal success.

Have you tried Jelly Drops. Sorry if you have, I only found out about them last week.

Thank you everyone for your responses!
The sad thing is this has been going on months, she drinks alcohol most evenings and is a smoker as well. I think soft drinks for her only go as far as tea and coffee, and like you @StopGo it's impossible to get anything down her.
It's very difficult as her mental health is really quite bad and the best way to describe it is she is child-like and very unaware. I think we are going to need to force her to go to the doctors 😩

@BunnyRuddington

She is dehydrated and gets UTI's all the time. DSis and I try all sorts to get fluids into her with minimal success.

Have you tried Jelly Drops. Sorry if you have, I only found out about them last week.

Thanks for the tip

Really don't envy you @Ccoffee217. Let us know how you get on with the GP and there's always the Elderly Parents Section if you need a bit of extra support from MN