Dad keeps picking nails till they bleed. Any suggestions?
My 95 year old dad keeps picking his finger and toe nails until they bleed. He won't let them grow enough for me to file and clip them. Any suggestions?
Talk to his doctor about medication for the anxiety. A lot of people with dementia develop OCD type behaviors. It might take a little while to get the correct medication and the correct dose and then get it into his system so it works properly. In the mean time can you try mittens? Even the thin cotton type gloves that you put on your hands with lotion at night might be enough to keep him from doing a lot of damage. Also if you see him picking don't say anything but place something else in his hands that he can "fiddle" with. Try all sorts of things from stuffed toys, blocks, a puzzle, crayons or colored pencils and a coloring book. (My husband was a chewer and I found an assortment of baby teething toys that he would chew on rather than his fingers or a blanket or his shirt.
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A lot of people with dementia develop OCD type behaviors.
It might take a little while to get the correct medication and the correct dose and then get it into his system so it works properly.
In the mean time can you try mittens? Even the thin cotton type gloves that you put on your hands with lotion at night might be enough to keep him from doing a lot of damage.
Also if you see him picking don't say anything but place something else in his hands that he can "fiddle" with. Try all sorts of things from stuffed toys, blocks, a puzzle, crayons or colored pencils and a coloring book. (My husband was a chewer and I found an assortment of baby teething toys that he would chew on rather than his fingers or a blanket or his shirt.