Money management errors can be a sign of dementia

[lucas80]

Following on @thewop and his post on seeking mental health care for an unwilling person, I was reminded of this story that I heard on NPR on Monday morning. Dementia can present itself years before diagnosis with signs of fiscal mismanagement. The elderly, and those suffering from dementia are particularly susceptible to fraud and theft. Some companies offer financial tracking services to provide warning of risky behavior, but there are broad gaps in who could report issues. I will again mention the struggles we had as a family with my mother before she went into memory care. By chance we discovered some unpaid bills on her counter one day and started to dig around and found that she was behind on several things. She'd been a scrupulous bill payer, and keeper of records her entire life, but she'd write in caps with underlining PAID on past due notices. In her mind she'd paid the cable/utility/phone bill, but she'd paid one months ago
As the story mentions 9 million Americans will be afflicted with a memory disorder by 2030, so the need for guidelines and assistance seems urgent. But, who steps in and when?

 

[hexumhawk]

So this is why Biden keeps sending money all over the globe!

 

[MitchLL]

So this is why Biden keeps sending money all over the globe!

Just be grateful Biden is President and not Putin's puppet.

 

[lucas80]

So this is why Biden keeps sending money all over the globe!

Sometimes it's okay to sit a thread out, especially when you aren't clever.

 

[hexumhawk]

Just be grateful Biden is President and not Putin's puppet.

Yes, so grateful!

 

[The Tradition]

Filing this under, "Gee, ya' think?"

 

[OrlandNole]

Person...woman...man...camera....Chapter 11...

 

[LuteHawk]

Many adult chlldren are able to care properly for their elderly
parents by having power of attorney. It also helps if their name
is listed along with the elderly parent on the checks of the elderly
parent. My mother died at age 95 and I was paying her bills
by handling her checkbook for her last 5 years.

 

[lucas80]

Filing this under, "Gee, ya' think?"

So, you were well versed on this topic and have a plan in place prior to not reading what I linked?

 

[bhawk24bob]

It's a double-edged sword. The easiest way to detect, prevent, and stop it is to have a joint account with the family member. The most likely culprit for elder abuse also happens to be the person on the joint account with the family member.

 

[JRHawk2003]

It's a living hell for family members folks.

I would not even wish it on Trump.

 

[BustingNarratives]

Sometimes it's okay to sit a thread out, especially when you aren't clever.

You have to admit though, you let down your left hand and hexum hit you with a wicked right hook.

 

[lucas80]

It's a double-edged sword. The easiest way to detect, prevent, and stop it is to have a joint account with the family member. The most likely culprit for elder abuse also happens to be the person on the joint account with the family member.

It is difficult to require institutional obligations, but in one of the examples in the story a woman loses her house because she starts to forget to pay her mortgage, and the family learns only when it's too late. A tremendous asset is lost to their mother, and the family. Should there be a safety check for a lender to notify a 2nd person in the case of default? What about an age triggered requirement?

 

[GOHOX69]

Dementia is terrible, especially for loved ones. I don't understand the yuck yuck jokes. Lots of morons on here. Sorry for your loss @lucas80 and @JRHawk2003.

 

[JupiterHawk]

I really hope that states that allow euthanasia follow Canada‘s lead on dementia and euthanasia.

Clinicians and patients with dementia can now have discussions about waivers of final consent. If the patient wants to have this option, the clinician and patient can agree to follow a process through which the clinician will follow the patient closely. On diagnosis with dementia, a person has a serious and incurable disease, and their natural death has become reasonably foreseeable. Their decline in capability will be irreversible. Over time, the state of decline will become advanced. Over time, the disease may cause enduring, intolerable and unrelievable suffering at the same time as decision-making capacity will decline. All of this should be carefully tracked.

This change to the law will enable some people with dementia to live longer than they would have under the old law (as they won’t have to proceed with MAiD prematurely to avoid losing access to MAiD entirely).

Once the person’s decline has become advanced and if suffering has become enduring, intolerable and unrelievable, they will become eligible for MAiD. While they still have decision-making capacity, the clinician and the patient can then enter into an arrangement that the clinician will provide MAiD on a specified day even if the person has lost capacity to consent. To be clear, if the person still has capacity to consent on that date, their wishes expressed that day, not the written arrangement, will be followed.

For people with dementia, changes in MAiD law offer new hope

Changes to Bill C-7 have released people with dementia from a cruel trap by letting them make provisions in advance to end their lives.

policyoptions.irpp.org

 

[noleclone2]

This is a pretty well known early sign, along with sudden deterioration of personal hygiene and changes in personality.

Personally, of all the ways to go out, this one terrifies me the most, especially some of the folks with early onset. I think the descent would be horrible because initially there would be that window of time where you would be aware of what is happening. And then you go out where all friends and family last memories of your last years of life or horrible and sad. And you are a burden.

I sure hope they find a cure or some steps to avoid it. I do know what I have read exercise, sleep, reading, puzzles/games, and not drinking too much all help reduce your chances. Which mean I really ****ed myself last 15 years! Hopefully shitposting on HORT counts as reading/games.

 

[EasyHawk]

This was certainly the case with my father who passed recently. He always handled all the finances (another good lesson for people - make sure both spouses are involved) and one day my mom got home and found out that a really nice guy had come by and found an issue with their roof, but he could fix it for $4,000. My dad gave him a check and of course they never saw him again. And around the same time he wrote a huge check to the university he graduated from (he always did a little something) but all my mom would say is "Let's just say they had a banner year for fundraising." She also got home once and he was on the phone with someone with an accent who had control of the computer and was asking him for bank account information, which fortunately he no longer remembered as my mom had the checkbook. She took the phone and hung up. So then she became responsible for all the bills and has had a rough time. Two overdrafts because she doesn't really understand that you need to write the automatically paid bills into your checkbook. She saves stacks of paperwork we go through when we visit.

 

[Derekd3408]

Makes sense. My grandpa starred slipping on the finances a few years back and grandma had to take over. He was diagnosed with the beginning stages of dementia 6ish months ago. He's also became increasingly angry about shit. I used to visit weekly, now it's maybe every couple of months.

 

[JRHawk2003]

I really hope that states that allow euthanasia follow Canada‘s lead on dementia and euthanasia.

Clinicians and patients with dementia can now have discussions about waivers of final consent. If the patient wants to have this option, the clinician and patient can agree to follow a process through which the clinician will follow the patient closely. On diagnosis with dementia, a person has a serious and incurable disease, and their natural death has become reasonably foreseeable. Their decline in capability will be irreversible. Over time, the state of decline will become advanced. Over time, the disease may cause enduring, intolerable and unrelievable suffering at the same time as decision-making capacity will decline. All of this should be carefully tracked.


Once the person’s decline has become advanced and if suffering has become enduring, intolerable and unrelievable, they will become eligible for MAiD. While they still have decision-making capacity, the clinician and the patient can then enter into an arrangement that the clinician will provide MAiD on a specified day even if the person has lost capacity to consent. To be clear, if the person still has capacity to consent on that date, their wishes expressed that day, not the written arrangement, will be followed.

For people with dementia, changes in MAiD law offer new hope

Changes to Bill C-7 have released people with dementia from a cruel trap by letting them make provisions in advance to end their lives.

policyoptions.irpp.org

I could never do that with my mother. However, we did do the "Do not resuscitate" forms on the fridge.

There is nothing worse than watching the person who gave you everything go like this. I could read college level at age 11....because of her.

You dont know how I beg and pray for this to stop.

 

[gohawks50]

I could never do that with my mother. However, we did do the "Do not resuscitate" forms on the fridge.

There is nothing worse than watching the person who gave you everything go like this. I could read college level at age 11....because of her.

You dont know how I beg and pray for this to stop.

I agree it's awful to watch the person who was always there for you change and become someone totally different. My mom's been gone 6 years and I still think back to that time wondering if I should have done something different to help her.

 

[HawkMachine]

I see it every year.

We are starting to write checks for some of our aging clients.

Some will open up a po box and have all their bills sent there. Others if they can still come in just drop them off.

Also, if you have older parents that pay quarterly estimates, have them come out electronically/automatically.

 

[JupiterHawk]

I could never do that with my mother. However, we did do the "Do not resuscitate" forms on the fridge.

There is nothing worse than watching the person who gave you everything go like this. I could read college level at age 11....because of her.

You dont know how I beg and pray for this to stop.

Could you do that for yourself?

 

[GOHOX69]

Are any of your loved ones on dementia drugs?

 

[lucas80]

Are any of your loved ones on dementia drugs?

This was several years ago, but we tried one with my mom. The doctor gave us a shoulder shrug and said it might help for 6 months or so to slow the progression. We tried it, but, who knows if it helped?