What do you do when your 82 yo parent with anxiety/depression, a bit of psychosis, and possible Dementia doesn't want to take any meds?
Mom does not want to take any of her meds. She is barely eating or drinking anything so putting it in food in any way isn't an option. I've spoken to all of her doctors and they don't seem to have any good advice.
In your last post, you said you live upstairs (or downstairs) from mom which makes it easy to provide care for her. I'd refuse to care for mom in any way until and unless she agrees to medicate herself appropriately. When she has a crisis, she can be placed in managed care otherwise. Oftentimes tough love is required to get through to a stubborn elder like this, and to maintain your own sanity at the same time.
I told my own mother the same thing when she was too depressed to function and unwilling to take the prescribed antidepressants. "Oddly enough", she decided to take them when I told her I was withdrawing my help until she changed her mind.
People do have the right to refuse medical intervention, even we those who love and care for them disagree or it seems against their best interests. You could go the route of trying to obtain a conservatorship through the courts or you can wait until an event happens to force a hospitalization or other change. Otherwise, you accept her decisions even when it’s hard to understand. I wish you both peace
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I told my own mother the same thing when she was too depressed to function and unwilling to take the prescribed antidepressants. "Oddly enough", she decided to take them when I told her I was withdrawing my help until she changed her mind.
Good luck.
Have her doctors ever suggested a dementia test?
Are you her PoA? If not, does she have one?
Has her doctors ever suggested to have her assessed for hospice since she's barely eating or drinking?
If you can provide more details we can give you better guidance.
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