One of my aides in TX was also her mother’s caregiver (she lived in the same complex) and while I had the gal for two hours a day (here, it’s only two hours every two weeks). She used to come to me and cry because her mother’s condition was deteriorating almost daily.
The woman had 10 kids and only my aide (the youngest) would care for her. No one else wanted the job.
The mom got to where she knew me if I saw her every day, but let a day or two go between and I had to be introduced again. I would hug her and tell her I was glad to meet her.
I tried to help the daughter understand that the mom had to be treated like another child, and just knowing that she could talk to me made the job easier for her. I miss that gal. She was so good to me and her mom.
Well, grandpa’s dementia is not very advanced; he is still VERY HIGHLY functional in many ways. Stroke-induced brain damage has, however, all but totally destroyed his sense of better judgment, his ability to realize implications, and his ability to “get” things by inference. So, unless a scam artist just about comes right out and says, “Hey, I’m just yankin’ yer chain; I’m really a Nigerian scammer,” he’ll probably never pick up on it.
The hardest part, though, is that his remaining high level of functionality leads him to believe he’s FINE, and that he doesn’t NEED to be a legally Protected Person; that the conservatorships of Person and Estate are superfluous legal infringements he can do without. Worse, with the aid of a “girlfriend” he met a month ago online, he’s got enough mobility to get out and talk to various agencies all over and undermine the legal authority of his guardian and conservator.
We’re having a “Come To Jesus” meeting TODAY failing which we may need to have someone arrested for “Undue Influence.” The girlfriend helped gramps close his existing bank accounts, and open new ones, because we were able to watch the activity in the old ones. When he set up the new accounts, under her influence, he made her a signer on those new accounts. She has direct, unfettered access; it’s borderline “Elder Abuse” under CA State Law.
Yeah, so it’s a razzle-dazzle day out West. Your prayers would certainly be appreciated.