Altzheimers?

[koan]

My mother called me two days ago claiming she was worried because they hadn't heard from me for months and didn't know if I was okay. I called her that night and we talked for about a half hour. She was slurring so, I assume, drunk.

She called me this afternoon on my way out the door and said the exact same thing.
"Hello?"
"Honey, you're there. We were so worried. We haven't heard from you for months."
"Mom, we had this conversation two nights ago."
silence
"I got your message and we talked for about a half hour."
"we were really worried."
"I know. That's why I called you.... I love you."
"ah. you did. I love you too."
"I know. It's okay. Sorry I didn't call for so long."

How serious should I take this?

[gmc]

Can she look after herself or is she being looked after? I too used to get phone calls like that. My own mother we thought was going dolally but it turned out she wasn't eating properly and it was largely due to lack of food. she had meals on wheels home care etc etc but we found out she was actually hiding the unfinished food. When she went in to long term care and started getting regular meals it was like all her faculties came back.

You know yourself when you haven't eaten for a long while and not sleeping properly you get a bit confused, people slur their words when overtired as well. She may also have had a mini stroke she may not even be aware of having had. It's up to you how seriously you take it but sometimes people need help even if they don't want it. It's an unpleasant topic but do you - or your family have powers of attorney? I don't know the procedures in Canada but in the UK you can set up power of attorney so that it is there if needed - otherwise in the event of your mother being incapable of making a decision you have to go to court to get one set up anyway which costs rather more.

[Accountable]

That kind of stuff scares the **** out of me, Koan. My beloved is having balance problems but doesn't want to go to the doctor, and that's making me nuts. If she started having memory slips like that, I'd probably be the one with a mini stroke. I'd get her to a doctor at the very least.

[koan]

She lives with my father still and they eat really well. She has had a problem telling the exact same story over and over all night for years but this is the first time she's forgotten something really big. They're half way across the country from where I live. I might call him to ask if it's getting more common.

She does drink a lot.

[LarsMac]

I would take it pretty serious.
There all sorts of explanations for memory lapses.

[AnneBoleyn]

I'm sorry you grew up with an alcoholic mother. If she has been drinking for decades, this does kill off a lot of grey matter. Asking your father for more information is a good idea. I want to give you a hug, koan. (((koan))). I'm sorry you don't have a closer relationship with your parents. From what little I know of you, I think your reasons must be good ones.

[LarsMac]

Several blood pressure meds are known to cause problems with memory, too.

[Blackslax]

This sounds alot like my mother-in-law. She's been repeating herself constantly for maybe 5 years. It's been slowly, but surely getting worsel. It drives my wife nuts. She also started slurring her words one day, a couple of months ago. She also was pronouncing her words incorrectly and dropping words from the sentences here and there. We brought her to the emergency room and they speculated that she had a mini-stroke. She may have had quite a few of them. This condition doesn't seem to leave any kind of telltale fingerprint for the doctors to discover later on. If I remember correctly they recommended that she take a small 80 gram aspirin a day to thin out her blood.

I truely hope that your mother is OK.

Good luck.

[koan]

Thanks. I'll talk to my dad tomorrow and see if there's any reason to have her see a doctor.

[YZGI]

Koan, I surly hope she doesn't have Alzheimer's. My father in law has had it for a few years now. Last week he couldn't remember my wife's name. She knew eventually it would come but it was very sad. Luckily he tends to be a happy Alzheimer patient but even a happy one is not only sad but a lot of work and very depressing.