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Thanks to all for your kind comments but I'm not sure I could open up to a stranger (therapist, social worker) and my wife has already stated (in one of her lucid moments) that she doesn't want a stranger touching/cleaning her body. The meeting with the palliative care doc went well. she is nice, made a lot of good comments but I was a "little" taken back when she mentioned my wife was in "end stage" dementia and most people (90+%) with her length of diagnosis are dead, so we must be doing "something" right. I've been depressed ever since that meeting. I guess I've been blocking a lot out over these years. I cannot picture life without my partner 😍. Every night for the last week, she has not known me and thinks we have strangers walking/living in our house. 😢. Thanks for listening.
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It is very sad. I’d just encourage any caregiver of those with dementia to get backup help lined up. It’s amazing how fast things can go south.
You may have a person you can’t leave alone for even a few minutes, while you also need to run the household, shop, arrange appointments, clean bathrooms, cook, answer the phone, manage meds, do laundry, change diapers, change linens, research resources, contact resources, retain services, manage finances, etc. And all the while your loved one is crying, hallucinating, scared, inconsolable and resistant to care.
We found a great home health company who would come at any time. We could call at 3:00 a.m. if necessary to get help to the house. Other times we called the local fire department and first responders came and got Daddy off the floor and back into bed.