Memories! When DH was mobile I never knew what I would wake up to find in the floor (or where). He would tt anywhere, while visiting my parents house 3 years ago I noticed him coming out of bedrm pants slightly wet in front. I never found where he chose to tt! One am I woke up to what looked like a snake by bed, it didn't smell like a snake - poop! Those days are gone now as he is mostly bedridden. What a journey this is.
An Aha moment when I re-read "commode" and looked at the link. I have a commode chair that Mother used years ago stored in the basement "in case I need it." Aluminum and not padded, but will serve the purpose for now. I plan to clean it up and use it for now to see how receptive hb is to its use.
Marilyn, my husband was continent until he became bedridden......now that didn't mean he used the toilet, he just whipped it out and went wherever, but it wasn't in his pants.....
Oh dear friends. I'm trying to figure out how to keep the commode area DRY at DH's ALF..Many of you are so far ahead BUT I did find the 'PET TRAINING PADs' at Walmart and supposedly these are helping. One problem was walking through the wetness and having wet socks then wearing SHOES with wet socks..AND with shoes, walking out of the bathroom after standing in the wetness. They mop the bathroom and I mop the bathroom and wipe it up when I'm there BUT the pet training pads claim to keep the TOP layer dry so pets don't TRACK wetness!!! Right now I don't know for sure if he is allowing them to stay in place..but I told him the commode leaked and 'they wanted to use those pads until the plumber could come fix it'..Anything is worth a try.
sorry to say this is going to be an ongoing problem til he quits trying to aim at the toilet. its also a really nasty issue to deal with as far as slips/falls walking in any wet surface. the doggy pee pads will help as long as they are laying on the floor like they should and not crumpled up around it or in the corner. otherwise a waste of money. many of us just use a towel around it to asbsorb the urine that drips. at least this way the ALF would have to wash it. :) but its a bit bulkier than the pads and he may have some trouble maneuvering it. until they come to the stage where you can get them into depends and not need to take them to the bathroom this will be an issue sadly. many topics here about urine and spraying everywhere. others will have more input. divvi
If at all possible teach them to sit down when peeing. It might be a good time to teach them before they get to later stages. I also started the Tena briefs before he needed them. He is mostly continent during the day but night time brings on a whole new set of problems.
The EOAD question on incontinence is something I talked at length to my co-worker who comes in 3 days a week. She is trained by organizations that are run regionally, are private, but get paid by and work for the government.
She said their experience (covers about 500,000 people in the region) is that EOAD people are materially less likely to have incontinence. They do; but, statistically much less than seniors who develop AD.
My geriatric specialist was concerned because we've had two accidents in confusing the use of the appliance (toilet versus bathtub) but what concerned her was the one time my wife pee'd sitting in a chair. The thing was she was asleep after not sleeping for some time - so it was a very deep sleep.
Like any sane person I would rather not have incontinence; but, I understand it is likely and am not one to want to pre-believe anything one way or the other - so I don't know.
What I do know is that my wife can't do anything by herself anymore. She can barely brush her teeth in some semi reasonable way with a lot of help like putting it to her mouth and showing her etc. She can dress herself again after months of not being able to and even gets two socks on (or three but not one or none right now).
But she will ask to go to the bathroom or if she is by herself goes (knock wood). Both accidents involving trying to use the bathtub were when the toilet had already been used by her and she can't flush anymore. (My wife gets up at all hours to fill her busy schedule of talking to the mirror or to her invisible friends).
That one accident was about 4 months ago. That's everything on that.
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About men peeing. I'm different. That's probably obvious by now. I never stood up. I've sat down all my life which in my mind can be summed up in the word...DUHHH! Here's a seat. Don't use it. Pardon??
I've had this conversation many times with the guys. They can do what they want. I think the whole topic is an example of 'we don't know why we do this we just do'. More power to you.
There are three functionalities involved:
1. Some men are created more equal than others. When you have extra inches of you hanging in the water I completely agree - stand up. On the flip side you'll be sitting every day anyways so figure it out.
2. I am 6'5" tall. If you understand chaos theory or have poured liquid from too much of a height you get that it breaks up quite wildly not to mention my (uhh) contribution has more energy since it's falling from a greater height. This creates undue splashing. Not good. Not happening.
3. Guessing some 25% of the time I walk up to that mysterious bowl, I'm not exactly certain what I'm going to be doing because there are more possibilities. Other's can perform their own rituals; but, to me there is only one choice in harmony with the zen of the moment - sit down.
While I'm on this strange topic, I'll just throw out there that women can do it standing up too. They just don't. Nuff said.
Wolf--First, I'd wager that the vast majority of women learned as children how to do it standing up when they are using a pubic toilet.
Second, thank you for telling me the first good (?) thing about EOAD vs. later onset AD. Six years into this, it is the first time I'd heard that. I have often marveled that while my husband is so impaired (Stage 6) in so many areas, he still knows to tell me when he needs to use the bathroom. Can't find it, can't find the toilet when he's in it, has to be told all the steps involved, etc., but at least he still recognizes "the urge"... now I understand why.
Hmmmm....Interesting ...My DH still knows when he needs to go and will tell me. Now, he can't have EOAD as he is 88. He,to, needs someone to lead him to the bathroom. He has most of the stage 6 symptoms. He has not lost his vocabulary and can still read with no problem but chooses not to read. Vocabulary...Example, yesterday he said I quit...I ask him what did he mean by quit..he said resign...I said resign from what..He said the corporation....Another time, he clearly ask me if I had any extra curricular activities going on. As I have said before that the first sign I had to know something was wrong was when he started accusing me of playing around with some kid across the street that drives a pick-up truck. He still tells the sitter that I have a couple of boyfriends. I guess it's true..if you see one person with alz you have seen one person. He is always mumbling and the words make no sense but once in awhile he can clearly state what he means.
This has nothing to do with poop! My my DH keeps coming up with things that never happened. Today he was saying we got a letter from in sister in Ohio (in an ALF with Alz). We didn't, in fact we haven't heard from her for a few months, which is fine with me. I just wish he wouldn't come up with these things and forget about his sister. He has been saying for a few months he is going to write her a letter. I'm not sure he could write one and the last time he spoke to her on the phone he couldn't understand her and gave the phone to me!
aww Jean21, He has Alzheimer's.He does believe he got a letter from his sister. BUT!.... He isn't living in the NOW, he's living in the Past, when, perhaps he DID get a letter from his sister in Ohio. As time goes on, he'll remember cousins, other family members and school chums you may not even know. My DH did that and I encouraged him to tell me all about them. He'd just laugh and laugh about the crazy antics they pulled last week. (and they were funny!!) It wasn't last week, it was in the late 1940's when these antics happened, but he was remembering them as if it was just yesterday. His dearest best friend, who died when he was only 39, was back in his life and he was energized by his stories of their escapades. ..and then, he'd drift away into some abyss....and be somewhere else.