Dementia Dad wants a vacation. What to do?

I took my mother with Alzheimer's on a 2 1/2 hour flight to a resort in the Bahamas. The flight was fine her old memories of flying and frequent trips kicked in. In caring for her for a number of years I learned that any anxiety on her part was when she was trying to make sense of her world, So the flight went well because she just needed a few reminders as to where we were going. I always found she enjoyed going in the car and her mind just focused on the scenery or my driving! Over all the trip was a success, she needed a little reassurance near bedtime as to where we were and when we were going home. She enjoyed looking at the water and the eating in the outdoor restaurants. I had a portable wheel chair which made it easier . If you can take a second person it would help you have a little break,

My thoughts would be to fly since the drive is so long. One reason is sitting for that long can cause a deep vein thrombosis or DVT. This happened recently to my dad after a 4 hr. Drive to Dallas even. So since you would be traveling without help, the flight would be a better option and the crew could help if an emergency occurred. Good luck and hope it works out.

Jeanne, thank you so much for your reply.. Regarding his hallucinations, he has met with psychiatrists, and they have not seen this too often.. He has been prescribed Seroquel; helps a little, but not working 100%..

I lived with my husband with LBD for 10 years. We took many trips during that time, by plane, train, on cruises, and by car. As his strength declined and his problems increased, I adjusted our destinations accordingly. On our last cruise (Lake Michigan) I took a helper along. It would not have been possible for me to do it alone at that point.

My advice is take Dad on vacation if you possibly can. Maybe it can't be his ideal spot. What does he like best about Florida? What destinations are closer to him that might offer some of these things? Some of his favorite things are better than nothing, even if not "ideal."

If possible, taking someone with you that he knows and trusts would be better than hiring a stranger at the destination.

If you go all the way to Florida you may feel you should stay a while to make that travel worthwhile. If you can find suitable near-by destinations you can do shorter stays that may suit his stamina better.

I tried to get full value out of each of our trips by giving him the pleasure of anticipating it. He'd study the brochures and talk about the trip for a couple of weeks ahead. I took tons of pictures on each outing -- near or far, a couple days or a couple of weeks -- and put a scrapbook (electronically) together so he could enjoy the memories afterwards.

His LBD specialist was very much in favor of travel for him.

As an aside ... about the hallucinations. Most LBD hallucinations are benign and do not need treatment. But it sounds like Dad's are very bothersome. Have you discussed possible treatment for them with his doctor?