My mom is in such severe pain the nursing home has increased her medication dosage. She pretty much sleeps all the time now.
They just sent her for an MRI on Monday. She has another on Friday. I'm assuming to rule out broken bones etc.
Is it common for people with dementia to have severe chronic pain without having something broken?
I spoke with her this morning she said her pain is everywhere. A few weeks ago it was just her leg. Now it's her legs and arms. They are still waiting for the scan results.
Hospice will be another group that will keep an eye on her, keep her comfortable and help you and your family.
Im still waiting on finding out more about the cancer. They said hilar and that it looks like it's around the liver and gallbladder.
Im not sure if the cancer is a blessing. I hate thinking about mom my living another 5-10 with Alzheimer's.
And because of his massive stroke that he'd had many years earlier and the major damage it did to his brain, he seemed to be very resistant to any pain medications, even the opioids.
Hopefully in your moms case they will figure out where her pain is coming from so they can fix/treat it.
Otherwise it just may be time to bring hospice on board and quit putting her through needless tests and just let her be comfortable until she leaves this world. There are no happy endings with dementia. It always leads to death one way or another.
Wishing you both well.
It just bothers me it took months to get them moving on the scans. Originally, my husband and I were suggesting they send her to the ER. The nurse practitioner agreed to up her medication. Now they're in the process. My dad makes decisions for her. We try to make suggestions.
Dementia symptoms are different for everyone.
When will you get the test results back?
Being pregnant can destroy your core. It most definitely can cause back issues.
All moms carry their babies. They can’t walk! We carried them or put them in a stroller.
BUT--I, for one, am all about keeping people in chronic pain comfortable. Life with pain, day in, day out is so disabling.
Just 'getting old' is painful. All those injuries from the past when we were unconquerable come back to roost in our later years.
My back is ruined and when I asked the dr WHY--he said "did you have babies?" (Yes, 5-10 lb babies!) "did you carry them around?" (Of course!) He said, "well, there's one (well 5) good reasons to hurt."
Getting out of pain and staying that way all day, everyday is honestly my biggest challenge these days.
I've noticed that my DH (who has had MULTIPLE sports injuries) is really, really grumpy on the days he's in pain. And being a liver transplant patient, he has to be very careful about what he takes for the pain. I know his QOL is not what he'd like at age 71, but he is paying the price for some stupid choices and for being a 'jock'. He's at the pain clinic right now, trying to work out the incessant pain in his neck from a motorcycle accident.
I hope you can keep your mom out of pain--having dementia on top of hurting must be awful.
Plus, dementia affects everyone differently.
I hope that your mom’s pain subsides. It’s hard to watch our family members suffer.
I also hope that you get the answers that you need from your mother’s doctor.
All the best to you and your family.