Thursday, September 19, 2013

Thank You to the Local Police!!

Seriously........

how often do you hear of the local "Police" picking up your 83 year old dad at 2:30 in the morning???

Hey y'all.....I need your prayers!  Some very hard decisions are going to have to be made Soon about the care of my dad.....

His Alzheimer's is progressing and it is so very heartbreaking.    The sad thing is, during the daytime hours, he does fairly well.  It's the night time hours that causes him so much confusion.

Last night, one of our local police officers picked him up about a mile from his house.  He was wearing only his underwear and T-shirt, with NO shoes on.

Who knows, what he could have been thinking of!!  He knocked on a door and when the lady came to the door, he wanted to know if there was a bed that he could sleep in for the night!   

Of course, she told him NO and told him to go down the road to another house.   The police got there before he got to the next house.    Thankfully, they put him in the car and let him rest, until they could figure out where he belonged.  

  He didn't exactly know where he lived, so the police phoned a guy that works with my brother and he came and helped get him back in the house.  

I knew nothing of this until early this morning!!

My niece (who lives with my dad) did not hear him open the door.   She was sleeping and he just opened that door and out he went.    So, as you can guess....today, we will be making some decisions that will assure us that he is safe.  

I have replayed several scenarios that could have happened, but I must not go there.  I just have to move forward and do what we have to do to prevent something like this from happening again.

I thank the Lord that my dad is safe this morning..

I do ask for your prayers.......

shug ~

10 comments:

  1. Heartbreaking, Shug... Bottom Line is that you have to get him into a good facility where he can be watched. You wouldn't be able to live with yourself if he were to wander off and be found laying in a ditch dead... He wasn't thinking --and that is what Alzheimer's is... I know it will be hard --but you really need to do something. The other alternative is to get someone in his house with him 24/7 --or especially at nights...

    PRAYERS and LOVE and lots of HUGS,
    Betsy

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  2. I was thinking also about him getting out of the house even though your niece was there. Change the locks to something he cannot open... That may be the first alternative.. Good Luck.

    God Bless.
    Love,
    Betsy

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  3. Oh my. I so agree with Betsy,you will have to make sure that he is being watched every minute. The dangers that he might face are just too much. I am sure that you and the rest of the family would also rest better,knowing that Dad is safe at all times.Alzheimer's is such a terrible disease.Jake's sister was just diagnosed with it and my heart hurts for her and her husband.

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  4. oh my gosh, very scary, thankgoodness someone knew where he lived, that happened to a family here last winter, with out temperatures at night in winter it was not a happy ending I'm sad to say but it only re enforces the fact he now needs protection, poor guy, it really sucks getting old, you are in my prayers, and him also!

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  5. Shug, that is so heartbreaking...and scary!!! My mom did that once in her apt. complex. Like you, I couldn't bear to think of the things that could have happened to her. I will pray for a safe alternative for your dad. My heart really goes out to you!

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  6. I went through this same thing with my grandmother, and she did the same thing once. It is no use to replay any of this in your head, he was found and is fine. You are a wonderful daughter, and now you just need to pray for a strong leading from God and do the best you can. It is so very hard, but you will get through it with God and your strong and close family. Shug, I will pray about this and ask God to lead you to the right decision. Please continue to let us know...

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  7. Oh my goodness. I am with Betsy on this one. Get an additional lock on the door perhaps something used for child safety. Then start making the other plans and decisions. I am so glad to hear he is ok. The local police are often invisible heroes. Specially in small communities where almost everyone knows everyone.

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  8. So sorry to hear this! I worked at the rehab hospital in Tyler this summer and it is heart breaking to see someone suffering with Alzheimer's or dementia. I know a family that has a similar need to keep someone from leaving the house. They installed sensors on the doors and windows and an alarm beeps continuously any time one of those is open. Also,they installed one of those deadbolt type locks that you have to put a code into, but they installed it with the code side on the inside. So to get out you have to put in a simple code. Since he is OK during the day, maybe y'all could just make sure it is locked at night. The sweet escapee that I know has not been able to sneak out since. Praying for you and your family!

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  9. Yes, Shug, prayers for your Dad and the entire family as these hard decisions have to be made. Oh, girl. Sending big hugs your way, too. blessings ~ tanna

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  10. Shug, we went through this with my mom a couple decades ago. Breaks my heart to hear that you are living this same scenario now. Yes, he needs care and needs it now or he will get hurt. I'm so sorry for him and for you, and thankful you're a woman of faith. It's hard to see our parents deteriorate. I felt like I lost my mom in increments before we lost her altogether. So many of our generation dealing with that right now. Keeping you and your dad in prayer. No easy answers,
    Deb

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Thank you for Blessing me today with your comments...

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