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My mom has been complaining the last 30 days of not feeling good and her back and side hurting off and on..she doesnot walk she goes from wheelchair to her recliner...(which she stays in all day but to go to bathroom and eat)took her to Doctor he said that it was the way she was sitting all day..and that is to be expected because of the Alzheimer's...my mother never complains at all because she doesnot want to take meds..Doctor is ordering a ultrasound..my question is is this the Alzheimer's that is really doing this because of her having no muscles..tone ? I know some are telling me that the brain could be telling her that she hurts and really dnt hurt..but I donot believe that..thanks for any answers😀😀😀

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Hi the doctor put my mom on norco pain meds she hasnot been in pain for the last week..which is great..but what are the bad side effects with Alzheimer's
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Motherof5,
I'm sorry about your mother. My great aunt recovered from skin cancer (radiation), but later on became ill. She was too weak to undergo any other treatments and the doctor said, she couldn't even handle a colonoscopy. We kept her comfortable as possible, as that is what she wanted. She was very alert and had no dementia. She was 85 as well.
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Thinks so much for answers..she is 85..yes that what doctor tole us today again...that she couldnot go through the treatments..so we are just going to watch her and keep her out of pain as much as we can...I love this side y'all made me feel a lot better about my decision...thanks so much..y'all are wonderful..
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Your job now is to arrange for your mother to have the least discomfort. It is not to extend her life. I understand your feeling guilt, but at least turn down the volume on it! If this were a dog, would you put it to sleep? We don't put humans to sleep, but we can protect them from unnecessary medical poking and prodding.

This is such hard work! Hugs.
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Mother of 5 forget the guilt you are making absolutely the right decision for Mom. Get a second opinion if you like but think carefully about anymore testing, Second doc can look at existing CT scan.
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"If you won't do the treatment, don't do the test."

Is the doctor saying that the tests would be hard on Mom, and even if they indicate cancer, Mom could not take the treatment? If that is the case (and I really am not sure I am interpreting what you wrote correctly), then I would definitely not put Mom through the tests.

I'd only do the tests if there is some potential benefit to knowing the exact nature of the nodule.
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MO5, how old is mom?
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Does mom have medical directives in place? Are you POA? Do you thibk this warrants a second opinion? If so, seek one. Otherwise follow mom's instructions.
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Took my mom to emergency room because of her side again...they took a ct scan and found this..pulmonary nodule..thickened endometrium..and diverticulosis...doctor tole us he dnt think she can go through these test to see how serious it is....he said that if the spots on lung is cancer she wouldnot go through the test..I feel so guilty not knowing if this is the right decision or not...he tole us to talk about it and let him know..
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Hi thanks for all the comments..very helpful..they said that she didnot a uti..but blood in urine he just tole me to follow up with her doctor..and just said she is lossing muscle tone...which comes with Alzheimer's ...I did take what chap said with a gran of salt...when right over my head..
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Mother of 5 the truth is if you don't use it you loose it. While I don't advocate bullying the elderly to exercise at least if you can keep up some movement it will be better for your loved ones wellbeing. There comes a time when nothing works and you and the loved ones just have to accommodate reality.
Judging when that time has come is not something that anyone can reliably predict, at best it is an estimate and at worst wishful thinking. There are no charts to follow with stages of development as with infant's mile stones.
As you have been advised UTIs are very prevalent especially in old ladies so you do need to be vigilant especially as they frequently do not show signs of infection just unusual behavior. It is a simple matter to run a urine specimen to the Dr's office Mom does not have to go too.
This is a case for cleanliness especially after a bowel movement. However many times you say wipe front to back many people are physically incapable as they age due to stiff joints and weakness. I know everyone wants to protect their loved one's dignity but this is a case to over ride that. If you can get her to stand in the shower and wash the genital area with plenty of soap and warm water that is the best solution. Spraying with a bottle of warm water also helps the process.
When someone is wearing Depends or pads it is very easy for uncleaned fecal matter to migrate forward to the urethra. Clipping long pubic hair is also a good plan. Use of a barrier cream adds to the patient's comfort. It is very sore, uncomfortable and itchy when there is feces on the skin round the anus.
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Glad I hate to say it but Capt usually speaks the truth. He just has his own unique way of putting things. Some of us find him amusing but others wish he would be banned forever from this site.
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Momof5, take everything captain says with at least 50 grains of salt! He says things that tend to scare some people. He is quite the different sort, and he is proud of it. Cap, think before you write!
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Blood in the urine is not good. Did they check her for a UTI. I hope so. My mom had a series of seven UTI's in a year. First one she complained of a back ache, this went on for several days. Took her for a massage, everything. Boy, did I feel stupid when I took her to the doc and sbe had a UTI. Another of the UTI's I thought she was having a stroke, couldn't walk and speech was garbled. It was not a stroke, but another UTI. She never experienced pain common with UTI's as many elderly do not. They should have sent a culture for testing for UTI. Did they do that? Not all infections show up on the dip test. Results from the culture may take several days.
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Wow I hope that dnt happen to my mom...she is in a memory care center..so that's good..
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you havent seen stage 7 . according to my sis and her experience with alzheimers , stage 7 entails granny walking up and down her street with a shotgun threatening to blow away the mexicans and blacks . that is so cool . i regret that i never got to know sis ' s granny ..
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Thank for all y'all post..please help me understand ....had to take my mom to hospital last night the pain woke her up...took blood work,took urine,test took a cat scan..everything came back great..only thing was that she had a little blood in urine..(have to follow up with her doctor in a week) he said that the pain is muscle and could be the begin of muscle loss...her heart is good.kidney are good..and etc....she health besides Alzheimer's...so is this a sign of what people go through in stagg 6 or 7..thanks
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After careful consideration and wondering "how long can this go on?!!!" I figure my mom has spent the last few years winding her way through stage 6. My mom has a history of heart disease and stroke so her problems are likely vascular dementia rather than AD but who knows. I think your doctor is not really very accurate in his staging, once they hit stage 7 they are pretty much down to their last year or two, your mom like mine may be on the cusp.
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Thanks yep she doesnot walk because her legs are so weak she can hardly stand up..they tried physical therapy twice but (she is in a memory care center)the caregivers dnt keep it up..Doctor said will not do her any good....Doctor put her at 7..3years ago..I am like you said I dnt believe she is at stage 7..thanks..
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If she is talking and walking then she may not be at stage 7...yet. See if you can get Dr to order some physical therapy because life becomes so much more difficult when they don't walk, soon you will have difficulty with transfers as well. My mom has spent most of the last 3 years sleeping 16 to 18 hours a day, but she could still ambulate until I had her in a nursing home for 2 weeks respite. Don't let her stop walking completely unless she is falling, once the muscle tone is lost I won't come back.
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