So sorry to hear of your Mom, my Mom died a few years ago after having Alzheimer's for a couple of years. Of course, Mom was 97 when she died and will into her 90's before she had symptoms; I feel so very, very sorry to hear of so many so much younger - my veterinarian just died at age 59 - a particularly fast moving manifestation of the disease, less than a year from "noticeable symptoms" and maybe 8 months from diagnosis.
I do want to share 3 things that we realized:
- We did everything we could ourselves, then hired a part time caregiver for what we couldn't do. Not everyone has a gift for providing all the personal care that is needed.
- Eventually, we moved Mom to a small private care facility that took really good care of about 10 women at a time, all with dementia / Alzheimer's. We could no longer care for her safely - perhaps she could have remained home longer had she not been so frail (96 years old). There is no shame in ensuring that your loved one has the best care possible, even when you cannot personally provide it.
- And most sadly, those illnesses cause you to feel like you lose your loved one twice - once when their mind deteriorates to the point that they no longer know who they are and again when the end finally comes.
As someone said above, I would not wish this horrible illness on anyone or anyone's loved ones. Prayers for you.
