Wandering and Safety
Hi, my husband is starting to wander and leave the house in between Aides or when we move to a different part of the house. He often brings the dog, he carries her and has no leash, we are hiding it now.
Unfortunately I do not have Aides full time, I was only approved for 4 hours and pay a girl out of pocket in the morning for 2 hours. He is alone sometimes for approximately one to two hours. I have 2 pet cameras and an Alzheimers phone that has GPS on it. He sometimes forgets his phone...I work 6 days a week, my son works, and my daughter is in college out of state. Family help is sporadic at best. If I do not send out a group text to his siblings they do not get in touch.
I live in a building, and I'm trying to figure out the safest way for him not leaving without locking him in and it becoming a safety hazard.
Any tips or ideas would be greatly appreciated.
I used a gps tracker in my husbands shoe. It was an insole that I charged every night. I figured her would take off a watch or not have his phone.
@Mcschmitt, what a wonderful idea. I never knew there were such devices that you could place in a shoe to track a loved one. This is a wonderful idea. There are watches or stuff you can put on a phone, but like you mentioned these devices can easily be forgotten or taken off. A device in a shoe is secure. I really appreciate you mentioning this idea to this community. Blessings and Peace, Kristin Martin, Community Moderator
@Mattkay1030, yes, I'd love to know where you can find a shoe GPS device as well. This would be wonderful information for this community. Other tracking devices are so easily removed. Thank you for mentioning this question. Blessings and Peace, Kristin Martin, Community Moderator
GTX corp. Just Google it. I think they are based out of California. My husband has early onset Alzheimer's disease. He never knew he had it in his shoe because you just take out the original insole. God bless you on your journey .
I have also heard that if you put a washcloth the same color of the door over the door knob that if they do not see the door knob they cant figure out how to open the door. Have you alerted others in your building? We live on an court with 11 houses. I sent all of them a letter alerting them that if they saw jerry out alone to please engage him in conversation. I gave them all of our phone numbers and caregiver phone numbers as well along with license plate numbers of our caregivers so they would know who was with jerry on any given day. Is there any sort of senior daycare that you husband could go to? We have one here in peoria, but Jerry only lasted a couple of days. He had a lot of aggression and anger issues until we got his medicines regulated.
Thank you again @Mcschmitt for being in this community and offering up an encouraging word. We are so grateful you are here. Have a nice day. Blessings and Peace, Kristin Martin, Community Moderator
Oh I am so sorry. I have read where PTSD can contribute to a dementia diagnosis. And 9/11 would definitely cause that. My husband was a banker for 35 years and came home one day from work and said he could not do numbers anymore. He was 58. He turned 67 this summer. He has not walked in over 18 months. Nonverbal. Hasn't known anyone in over three years. Fortunately I have been a nurse for 44 years. I was able to take early retirement three years ago to care for him 24/7. No family history. His mom lived to be 101 and was mentally alert the day she passed. We have two grown sons that live here in town so I fell very blessed. I also have retired nurse friends that help me. My skills as a nurse allow me to care for him in our home. He has been on hospice for 18 months. Please keep in touch. In the past nine years I have been there and done that. I am happy to help. 💚
God Bless your dedication! So young, and very sad. Such a cruel disease. I can't imagine...My husband was around the same age. Some days I want to run...I'm a Nurse too, and was not prepared for his diagnosis. I thought it was depression after retiring after 32 years and then losing his parents within a year of one another. I still have to work at least another 7 years. Unfortunately his siblings only respond when I send a group text. I have been thru 2 Agencies and a few Aides. I pay for a girl in the morning who is wonderful. My son graduated College and my daughter is a Senior in College out of State. My husband was diagnosed when they were both in College. I feel terrible for my kids...I have found that people do not know how to react or avoid, especially with his lack of speech. Great full for good friends who let me vent, but truly do not understand. Prayers to you and your family!!! Would love to stay in touch, thank you so very much. @Mcschmitt, thank you for offering up your support to other members in this community. You are such a blessing. What a gift that you were a nurse for 44 years and have those skills to care for your husband now. I imagine that is a hard task for you, but what a gift you are to him. I am sure he is so grateful for all the love and care you give him. Thank you for everything you do for him. Blessings and Peace, Kristin Martin, Community Moderator
