Here's a comprehensive resource for you if your loved one is at any stage of dementia and is still driving.
Here is a link to Dementia & Driving, provided by Warner Law Offices.
This guide gives suggested ways to approach the dreaded taking-away-the-carkey conversation, ideas to give your loved one some level of transportation independence, and how to cope with the emotions of this change.
Tena L. Scallan has some great suggestions for "How to Keep Your Loved Ones Independent" in Caregiver.com, the free newsletter for Today's Caregiver magazine.
Two of her suggestions resonate most with me. One is understanding that changes in your loved one's physical abilities will most likely be accompanied by emotions. Whether it's a temporary setback, like post-surgery rehab, or permanent decline, your loved one may well exhibit symptoms of depression. None of us likes to face the new reality of lost independence and increased dependence. I would learn what you can about the grief process, because your loved one is experiencing a loss, and so are you as you newly set aside a part of your own life to care for someone's new need.
The other one of Scallan's suggestions that I feel compelled to stress is paying attention to your loved one's dietary habits. This can be challenging, especially if Dad's only pleasure these days is a chocolate frosted donut with his morning coffee. But I encourage you to find a reliable source of information about dietary needs in the elderly, or in whatever other people group your loved one falls in (for example, people with MS or Alzheimer's or diabetes). I might offer the Mayo Clinic or Cleveland Clinic as reliable sources of health info, but you can find others as well. Zero in on fiber and fluids, as Scallan mentions. And try to limit your gifts of sugary treats.
To read Tena Scallan's other practical tips for keeping your loved one independent, click here.
