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daughter22 Asked August 2017

My mother has Alzheimer's and has started taking off her pad and pull ups. How can I stop this?

My mother has Alzheimer's and is 92 years old. Is there anything that would be more difficult for her to take off, or any other solution for this recent change in her behavior? There are waterproof covers on the mattress and memory foam pad and there are waterproof pads on the edges where she often sits in the morning. But it is overwhelming to have to clean her up and change her clothes and launder her sheets almost every day! Any ideas???

SueC1957 Sep 2017
From Amazon;
Adult Bodysuit (Onsie)- Diapering T-Shirt , Medium, White Leakmaster
3.6 out of 5 stars 29 customer reviews
$25. + $4.50 shipping

I've got one on order. I'll let you know how they work.

Stilltired Sep 2017
I purchased the wonderful pajamas at allegromedical. Two pair were perfect for our situation - one in the wash & one ready. The one piece jumpsuits are the ones, they fit good, not the ones that look like two piece suits - those are kind of iffy size wise.

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SueC1957 Aug 2017
Daughter22,
We're sisters!
We just moved my 94 year old mother in with us 3 days ago from the memory care (couldn't
afford it anymore). She does the same thing!
For the past 2 nights, I've taken her to the BR, washed her up, changed into PJ's, put on 2 diapers and 2 pads (man, can she pee!) and put her to bed. She's as quiet as a mouse but I've learned to peek in. There she is sitting naked on the sheets (thank God for bed pads), rolling up the diapers and shoving them under the bed!
On the last day at the care facility, they told me that she's been dropping her diapers in corners of the room and urinating!
Since she's been home with us, we watch her like a hawk. The problem she has is that she can't "bend" (go into a 45 degree angle to sit down on the toilet, dining room chair, sofa. We have to push/guide her or she would fall like a straight log. I'm sure the facility didn't take as much time with her as we do, so hence the behavior. I'm sure she's embarrassed of having a wet diaper and it's also uncomfortable so she wants to get rid of it. Under the bed would be a great hiding place, right? Fortunately we have tile floors and can mop away that horrible odor.
The above suggestions are good. Also;
*Limit the amount of fluids after 5-6 pm but encourage fluids in the morning and early afternoon.
*Have her tinkle right before bed.
*Take her to the doctor to see if she has a bladder infection. We just went yesterday. She had all the classic symptoms; frequency, urgency, strong smelling dark urine, only voiding tiny amounts. Turns out she had a little temperature too. I didn't pick up on that one since she's "cold" all the time. She did have a bladder infection and is on antibiotics now. A UTI can cause strange behavior so get her checked out. Maybe it could be a simple fix, I hope for your sake.
We are at our wits end trying to be with her every second (she's not mobile alone) so we are hiring a couple of caregivers so they can sit with her and help her to the BR when necessary. One for 4 days wk during the day and one for 4 nights a week during sleep. Fortunately it's much cheaper here in Tijuana, México to hire helpers. We know both these people and trust them. Hubby works at home and I only will be working away from home 2 days a week.
Oh Lord, how I hope this situation will get better after the antibiotics!
Madge, I'm going to check into a backwards onesie. Would Amazon carry them? It sounds like a good idea but she's so stubborn, she'd probably be up all night trying to pull a Houdini! 😆
Daughter22, I'll pray for you (us)!

Stilltired Aug 2017
As my mother in law's full time caregiver I had to address this problem. She would strip at any hour of the day or night and the laundry became a chore that was dreaded as well as cleaning the floor in her room & the hallway constantly. I found a place online where I ordered her two suits that zip & snap in the back that she could not remove. I only dressed her in these at night and told her they were new magic pajamas that she didn't have to take off when she had to pee (I also used nighttime disposable underwear). She was happy with them and actually came to depend on them for her "going to bed" comfort. In the evening after I got her into them & zipped her up she would say, "There now, I feel better." Those "pajamas" lifted a huge burden and made the day's laundry & cleaning so much easier as well as making her feel better.

Countrymouse Aug 2017
Poor mother - she thinks she's doing the right thing. After all, that's what you do when you need to "go" - you pull your underpants down. Unfortunately she's lost track of recent changes and is back at the toddler stage, where you've got the right basic idea but not the fine details of where and when and in what order to do everything.

Do you have bed and chair pressure alarms so that you know when she's on the move? That might give you time to get there before she removes her pad. A fixed schedule of changes and transfers will help too.

As for the laundry (sigh..!) - if you have such a thing as an old-fashioned laundry and dry cleaner in your neighbourhood, you may find that they do a collection and delivery service. You can get special disposable bags for soiled items that you pop the sheet in, do up, and the whole thing goes in the washing machine and cleverly undoes itself during the wash; so whether you're doing this at home or sending the laundry out, it minimises the more gruesome biohazards.

MsMadge Aug 2017
Mom's memory care facility tries to address this problem in three ways

1. Let them do it and clean up the mess - constant carpet cleaning for maintenance and laundry for housekeeping
2. Try to take them to the bathroom more frequently and soon after eating
3. There are garments called onesies which button in the back so the person cannot disrobe themselves

Toileting especially when bedridden is no fun for anyone

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