I posted this earlier in this same thread. Thought it might be helpful for newbies. Recipe for solution is:
2 C water 2 T baby oil 2 T liquid baby soap
1/2 roll of quality paper towels (Bounty or Viva work best) placed in a lidded plastic container
Mix together and pour over the paper towels.
My thrifty DIL makes her own baby wipes out of paper towels. Cuts the roll in half with a saw and removes the cardboard tube, places the half roll in a plastic container with tight-fitting lid and pours over a mixture. They are easy to pull out from the center. You can probably google how to do this or I could ask her for the "recipe".
to the top for new members. over 600 comments! gotta love it. :) your poop queen is alive and well and still holding the crown I do believe. ok by me til someone else wants it for a bit.:) my DH is determined I should maintain status quo.. smiling!
I'm looking for suggestions from those who are more experienced. My husband is more impaired physically than mentally (Multiple System Atrophy, a form of atypical Parkinson's--the cognitive effects are rigidity in his thinking and impairment emotionally and in executive function). He has both constipation and loose stools--the muscles that move things through the intestines aren't coordinating properly. He has decided he needed a potty chair by the recliner where he sleeps, because recently he wakes up in the morning and can't make it to the bathroom in time with his walker. He wears depends with extra pads, but when he has a bowel accident in his depends he feels he needs to take a shower, so he wants to use the potty chair to avoid that.
My question is how to empty the potty chair. I found small trash bags that fit well to line the bowl, so at present I am just tying up the bag with its contents and taking it out to the trash can, which is outdoors and picked up once a week. The wipes he uses can't go down the toilet so I don't want to dump the contents into the toilet. Is there a better way? Would it be better to get one of those diaper genies and put the bag in that? He has a trash can with a lid for his wet depends and that seems to work ok, though he sometimes overfills it (it isn't nearly as big a smell problem as the portable urinal he still uses).
pamsc its more work to bag it and take it outside but I find it the best remedy. even if outside your door til morning. I cant stand the smell no matter what we use indoors the poop smell permeates the room. even those diaper genies are second best I guess but in a pinch I would use that for sanitary if you cant get the bags outside right away. there are wipes that are disposable but a bit more money. as with the soiled diapers I bag it all and dispose of immediately. maybe some has a better way. you are probably doing it the easier way just going about it as you are. if he both loose and constipation you may want to try getting him a bit more regulated. not sure why you have both - sounds like too much of one or the other to try to balance it. I found after a long haul of varying products just about everything on the market a daily dose of miralax just enough daily to keep him going is working. check the meds hes on and see if any of this could be side effect of that. divvi
DH has just started pee-ing in his Depends, even though he does go back and forth to the bathroom. He is also starting to pee all over the bathroom floor, so I bought a rag mop and use white vinegar and water, which seems to kill the smell. He is much more tottery on his feet (fell last week; I called s-i-l, who came over in middle of night to pick him up), and he is sleeping a lot more, and eating a lot less. He'll be 89 this week…it seems so crazy that he has lived this long with significant cardiomyopathy and Alzheimers for the past 14 years. I thought it was supposed to kill ya, but he just goes on and on like the Energizer Bunny--torturing the people around him (what "people"--it's 99.9% just me) and thinking he's fine. So now I get up with him two or three times at night when he has to "go". I sleep with him in the queen-size bed so I know what he's doing although I'd much rather take the other bedroom. Anyway, I went back to the beginning and read all the Incontinence postings from the beginning of time--very helpful to see that others are pretty much in the same boat, and to see what they do. And who needs sleep anyway?
Hello "Incontinence" thread. My first time here as a victim of this symptom of AD. Hubs woke up wet in the night. Doesn't know what in the world could have happened. Thanks to this site, I was prepared. The plastic lined mattress pad has been on the bed for 2 yrs in anticipation of this moment. Now...to buy another one so we will have a spare. Thanks to all you veterans who continue to keep us armed and prepared for the next steps along the way!
Elizabeth, sorry this has become more of an issue for you. I know how troublesome this can be and I also know how you feel about wanting to sleep in the other room. I finally moved into the spare room only after putting baby monitors in DH room and an alarm on his bedroom doorway. That way I know whatever goes on in his room. I now sleep better and do not wake up WET just because HE does!!! Good luck...hugs to you
Thanks "bak". Those are great ideas. I am tired, but take power naps during the day, in between other family responsibilities. (Grandchildren.) Right now I can smell that it is time for poop patrol. And the beat goes on. Today is his 89th birthday--the family is coming over this evening for cake--although the family he really wants to be with are his mother and father and seven brothers and sisters--all dead, of course, except for one 90-year-old sister out-of-state. His parents were born in the 1880's, but he forgets they're gone.
This is a useful chart comparing diaper style products: http://www.xpmedical.com/dtest.html
I bought my husband the Abri-Form M4 for nighttime use, which hold over a half gallon. The Abri-Form have a plastic backing, while the similar Air Plus have a cloth-like outer layer.
On page 8 now and have laughed so much. Also was reminded of some helpful things like buying soft fluffy throw rugs with rubber backing to put under them. Thanks Divvi. Do you still do that? If you want some laughs, some good advice and also to get grossed out, go back and read this thread! L0L
only we can laugh at each others experiences and not feel bad cause we have all been there or will at some time. No one else is allowed to laugh though at us!
oh yeah. I have tried everything and anything possible in 15yrs!! with DH bedbound its more necessary than ever to keep him dry and the bed the least wet possible so I don't have to stress out changing sheets WITH him in the bed. :) we grow change adapt and evolve during this journey that's for sure. I have many pads rugs and cotton chux!! its true we do have to laugh but I doubt anyone else would find any humor in what we deal with.
Divvi, I truly don't know how you do this alone!! I changed the bed with him in it only once, and I was reduced to tears. Because of my "head issues" I can't lift more that 20 lbs, trying to roll him alone and dealing with the soiled linen was a ridiculously hard task. You remain my hero!
Finally got all 13 pages of this thread read and so many good ideas for keeping them dry at night. My DH sleeps on his side and rarely ever changes positions. This morning his Depends was just barely wet but his clothes on that side and the pad under him were soppy wet. His equipment was pointed down but apparently everything just ran out the leg with him sleeping on his side. Is there any way to pad the leg opening?
I have started reading from the beginning.....holy cow, this is going to be a real education! I saw someone mention about writing one of the "for Dummies" series books for Alz. caregiving....not a bad idea, if you think about it! Wouldn't it be a hoot to see that on the bookshelf at Barnes & Noble? Cover complete with descriptive information about this particular subject. Oh my :)
Second try to add comment. Finally read all 13 pages. Wow. Going to stock up on supplies tomorrow. DH still dry at night. Problem in afternoon and evening. Then difficult, threatening, aggressive, dangerous to try getting him to surrender his foul smelling clothes before bed. Now it is non-negotiable. So at great risk to myself I position myself between him and the bed and calmly keep asking him to take the clothes off as a favor to me please. How ridiculous is that. Then I am supposed to be ever so grateful to have them thrown in my face, and/or have poop strewn around the room as he winds up and delivers them. Good grief.
So I took him to his doctor. Not expecting anything. But surprise, surprise! Doc checked his prostate. No problem. Good news since he had prostate cancer radiation seed treatment years ago. So Doc prescribed Flomax and said to take at lunch time since our problem is afternoons. It has already cut down on the endless bathroom trips.
I had discontinued Namenda because of explosive diarrhea. Doc said to try it again. Sometimes works that way. I will wait to make sure the flomax is ok.
I suspected UTI. Was pleasantly surprised they could do the urine sample there. No trip to the lab which is always a horror story! But nurse said she couldnt help DH do it. She talked me through it. Amazingly DH let me help him!!! Will wait for results and hope antibiotics clear it up.
Now the big news. Doc says humans become lactose intolerant as we age. He said something like 80% african americans are lactose intolerant and 100% asians. Swedes and a few related ethnic groups don't have to worry. DH is Norwegian however, the Italian half leads to a strong suspicion of lactose intolerance. I think this is a good theory in our case. I recently tried making his favorite New England Clam Chowder from scratch instead of doctoring the canned stuff. It was amazingly good. However he had explosive diarrhea both times. So the half and half is apparenty the culprit. Doc says cut out milk, cheese, chocolate, yogurt and cottage cheese for14 days. Should see results. Then can try adding small amounts back in. Oh, and he said, make sure to cut out cottage cheese!!! And I was going to make lasagna this week, darn it. For now I am sticking with my Swedish side and filling my craving for cheddar as a late night snack.
I am still going to get some supplies mentioned in this thread because I think he is forgetting how things work and forgetting how to wipe. Mostly I guess he rinses it off his hands (Which are always gross). But one day last week he came back out to finish his beer with poop all over his hand. It was all over the bathroom too. Somehow I got him to take a shower. Complaining all the way. Got him settled with another beer and proceeded to spend about an hour cleaning up the mess. But he is clean and comfy having a wonderful evening on the patio dontcha know.
Question - does frequent urination go along with Alzhiemer's ? I know in the care facility he makes many trips to the bathroom, just like when he was at home, but even more. He doesn't make it much of the time & needs to be changed (after 6 months he still doesn't remember which room/bathroom is his). He has an appointment with a urologist at the beginning of Oct.,he is not feeling sick. They said they can never catch him to get a specimen...don't think I'm buying that. Go with him, for pete's sake! His afternoon nurse said she wonders if possible he's feeling the urge, but doesn't really need to go, which is what I wondered here at home. I think he needs to have his prostate checked, although if there's anything wrong there, what would they do about it. Anyway, does frequency come with the disease?
Struggling with this. She holds her urine and her bowel movements to the point where her stomach is extended. The Workers put her on the toilet but she won't go, I have tried, once she went and swear she peed for a minute. Recently She points to her vagina and complains that it hurts also complains sometimes that stomach hurts. Checked last week for uti but all ok they are checking agAin. talked to head of care and figure that maybe she feels the urge to go but that is not transferred to the brain to tell her to go. I am afraid the next step is incontinence. Anyone had this experience?
Mim I think the frequent trips to the bathroom are more related to the prostate. When I mentioned to Doc that he gets up at night and goes to bathroom but no sound. Back to bed for a minute or two. Back to bathroom and then he can pee. Doc immediately said he'd write a script for Flomax. This works on prostate and bladder when too many urges. Most have no side effects (some may get dizzy) and you will see result in 1-2 days. There is a generic for Flomax. DH was making fewer trips on the first day.
If your DH hasn't had prostate surgery, you might ask about Saw Palmetto. My DH to9k that along with magnesium or something like that and it helped for several years before the prostate cancer diagnosis. His prostate was enlarged and sometimes he couldn't go except in little dribbles. The Saw Palmetto helped with that and then later Doc switched him to Flomax when things got worse. After the prostate surgery he wasn't taking any of that. It is just the last couple of months the night time trips made me think of the prostate.
Doc called today and he doesn't have UTI. Good news for him medically I suppose. But he is still leaking some. Not so bad though. Could be the Flomax, but I have also severely cut down on dairy products. No diarrhea problems yet. But since that was intermittent, no telling what's next. I think since there is no UTI that we are entering the Alzheimers incontinence phase. Let's hope for a slow entry.
Rona, sorry I dont know about that. Ask your doctor about Flomax. The generic is Tamsulosin. According to the drug information from the pharmacy it works by relaxing muscles in prostate (which, of course, she does not have) and the bladder. It has been used to help pass kidney stones."It has also been used to help treat bladder problems in women." Sounds like a potential help to me! Like I said above, before the prostate cancer treatment it was a wonderful help in relaxing the death grip his prostate had on the urethra.
Mim, please let me know how urologist visit turns out. DH's Doc said he'd refer him to one since there is no UTI. I said I'd see how things go with the Flomax, Namenda, and dairy free diet. I am sure the urologist will check his prostate, not such a big deal. And he might recommend the Saw Palmetto (it's an herbal supplement) or prescribe Flomax. might make him more comfortable.
I will keep you posted, bhv. His appointment isn't until 10/5, so it will be a little while. He's in a care facility, so I'm not sure how doctors react/respond when a non-pharmaceutical med is suggested!