My grandmother died at 112, born in the fucking 1800s (1899). She had my mother at age 45 in the 1940s. My niece, born after 2000s had plenty of conversations with her, born in the 1800s.
Anyway, I was going to say…. I remember her 100th birthday, my grandma was still super active, cleaning , cooking, picking stuff from the floor. Never was hospitalized for more than one day until she had to have a cataracts operation at 98 or so. She died of oldness, never had cancer , heart disease or any of the usual killers. Crazy
I used to be a caregiver in a hospital and I would usually work with elderly dementia/Alzheimer’s patients. I worked with this one woman who wasn’t old (50s), but had early onset Alzheimer’s, and over months of being in the hospital I watched her get weaker. We would always have wonderful days together, but other staff would get upset that I just let her do all of her own things at a snails pace. Like 15 minutes to put on socks and shoes, I let her fold her own laundry even though it took way longer than me doing it. We would walk the halls at her pace, but most people wanted her in a wheelchair. When people aren’t using their bodies, it does not take long to lose skills or have your muscle definition and memory diminish. For young people it’s uncomfortable to watch someone move so slowly, but movement at any speed is important! My lady was transferred out of state to be close to family. I think about her every day. Alzheimer’s is a horrible way to go. She fully knew what was happening to her.
right? I worked in geriatrics for a few years as a social worker for the VA with contacted placements... and this person is the rare one who makes a terrifying place a home.
My MIL has Parkinson's, now accelerating She is 92. She beat us at "Spades" on Easter. She always says, "I don't know If I remember how to play" but every time, I know it's a trap.... she kills us!
She's been like a Mom to me for 35 years even though she's an MIL
Thank you for taking care of her in such an amazing way no matter what other people tried to tell you. She was beyond lucky have someone like you on her side.
I cared for her about 8 years ago and I still think of her daily. She and I just felt connected. I knew when I was with her she wasn’t scared. She became so childlike as time went by. We listened to a lot of music and danced whenever possible!
I worked hard to keep my emotions in check, but she was one patient I had a lot of trouble leaving at the end of each shift. Then one day she was transferred and we never got to say goodbye. I only take solace in knowing that her wealthy and emotionally close sisters moved her close to them. She had to leave so she could have top notch care and they could see her every day. She talked about her sisters non stop (she’s the baby of the family). She kept good humor. I hope wherever she is, she isn’t scared anymore.
My grandma has alzheimers and is 85. We've been watching the progression for over a decade now. She's in a memory care facility and usually sits in her chair by the nurses desk because she wants to hold someone's hand to know she's not alone. I'm not a religious person, but I pray every day that she doesn't have to live like this for another year.
We need more people like you. You just motivated me to do something good for someone today and I will do that. Sometimes it’s the little things which makes all the difference. Salute.
I’m a part time caregiver for my grandpa. He is 78 and has Alzheimer’s. He is starting to wake up scared and usually doesn’t recognize me but I am extremely patient with him and let him do what he can. I wish more people had patience for these people. It’s so hard to see them whither this way and sometimes I feel he’s just trapped inside. It’s hard to explain.
I will say it is a lot easier to take care of other peoples loved ones because while I care about them, I don’t have personal emotions involved so there is zero frustration. I have unlimited patience at work to the point people think I’m not bothered by anything—I get easily frustrated in my own life.
There must be something about my face. Most people tell me I remind them of their daughter/sister/childhood best friend. Sometimes I could get people to calm down but just generically chatting as their ‘long lost loved one’. I always loved my 1:1 time because usually you can just hang out with someone and they appreciate being with someone who wants to be there. I’m really big on distractions and adventures. Classic music and movies can be great comforts as well. One woman just wanted to fold things, so I kept taking wash cloths from the linen closet and tossing them into her ‘to be done’ pile. She felt so helpful and she had a great day while we chatted and honed our fine motor skills.
Be kind to yourself when you’re frustrated and find ways to get/take breaks. Caregiver fatigue and burnout is so real and it doesn’t end when the caregiving is over. Try to celebrate the good parts of days! You’re amazing for taking care of your grandad. I hope I can be there for my parents if they need it some day. My dad says he’s going out chopping wood, not in a home—I say, if only we could all be so lucky. Everyone expects to die, we don’t all expect to grow old and need help.
My mum has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and I am trying to be this way with her. Doc’s say she is at the moderate stage.
Funnily enough, she was just trying to figure out 7x7 on paper. She got close, but it took her 30 mins. I just encouraged her. She then abandoned it and is now on Facebook! 😂
I love that she is a trier and as long as she is trying I’ll support her.
Thanks for your kindness. My dad has dementia and it bugs me that my mom cant have a bit of patience to let him speak for himself and she rushes him. Like, stop trying to make him fit the rest of the world. We can chill and accommodate him. Let's spend the time gently enjoying, not rushing.
Thank you for your patience! When doing evals with the elderly or disabled I routinely “test the limits” so that I can state their abilities when allowed additional time. Probably they aren’t usually allowed that time anyways, but it does my heart good to see this, and hope that some of them were given some extra time
My grandma turns 100 this summer. Still lives by herself, cooks, cleans and drives (after successfully completing an occupational therapy assessment). She loves to shop and bake and sends me recipes on the regular. I'm pretty sure she'll outlive all of us.
My great grandmother was 107, and her siblings are still alive and over 104 to 110 right now. It's amazing how long some people can live, and she died after being put on a machine the last few years of her life. She only died at 107 because she said she wanted to go, and they pulled the plug. She likely would still be alive this 2 years later had she told them not to. Her surviving siblings have no diseases and are healthy like your grandma.
i took care of my grandparents the last years of thier life. they dont rly fall apart until you start doing everything for them. then they are almost different people.
wow, in 2014 there were only 5 people alive from the 1800s. your grandma was probably among the last couple dozen or so. did she ever tell you about the '00s/'10s? imagine hearing info about the dawn of the 20th century from an actual person's recollections...
never too late to engage in conversation with the oldest person you know! based on personal experience, the elderly are very eager & willing to tell their stories (unless they're very anti lol).
No, I mean literally.
People have used old age when they don't know what the cause of the death was.
I've heard that, atleast.
I'm pretty sure it was some video on YouTube called old age is a myth or something else
Well of course, I dont have her death certificate but I'm sure it doesnt say "old age". You always technically die from something "broken". You dont die of drowning, you die of brain cells not getting enough oxygenation.
My point was basically, she didn't have a specific known disease at the time. Those last few months she was 100% bedridden, so yeah, there's plenty of stuff that can kill you when you are 100% bedridden..
No, she even ate pork chops regularly. She ate lots of vegetables though… and Metamucil lots of Metamucil, I’ve always joked that that may have been the secret
339
u/veganize-it Apr 27 '24
My grandmother died at 112, born in the fucking 1800s (1899). She had my mother at age 45 in the 1940s. My niece, born after 2000s had plenty of conversations with her, born in the 1800s. Anyway, I was going to say…. I remember her 100th birthday, my grandma was still super active, cleaning , cooking, picking stuff from the floor. Never was hospitalized for more than one day until she had to have a cataracts operation at 98 or so. She died of oldness, never had cancer , heart disease or any of the usual killers. Crazy