Preparing for Alzheimer’s Mid-Stage and Late-Stage Care in Longmont, CO

Being proactive about researching Alzheimer's care options in Longmont, Boulder and Louisville, CO can go a long way in preparing for mid and late-stage Alzheimer's disease. Here's what our at-home caregivers recommend considering when looking into your options

When a senior family member is diagnosed with Alzheimer's, planning for mid-stage and late-stage care may seem somewhat premature. Nonetheless, as Alzheimer's disease is progressive, the later stages of the condition can only be more difficult to cope with, so you might want to take the time to reflect on what lies ahead. Preparing yourself for these stages will help you provide batter care for your parent and take care of yourself too.

What to Expect with Mid-Stage and Late-Stage Alzheimer's

During the early stages of the illness, which usually last up to two years, the effects of Alzheimer's may become noticeable but not debilitating. Your loved one's memory may falter a few times and they may need more help with certain day-to-day activities. Besides this, they will be able to care for themselves independently. However, it all starts to change in the mid and late stages of Alzheimer's.

As your parent's condition inevitably progresses from early to mid-stage, their memory and cognitive abilities will significantly decrease and they will struggle to function independently. During the mid-stage, which typically lasts up to four years, your loved one will depend on you or professional at-home caregivers to continue to live at home.

By late-stage Alzheimer's, lasting up to two years, most seniors lose their language abilities completely and experience short-term and long-term memory loss. This means your mom or dad will become entirely dependent on others for care. Most families rely on professional at-home caregivers to provide full-time care or opt to place their loved one into facilitated care.

How to Plan Ahead for the Later Stages of Alzheimer's Disease

Preparing for every stage of Alzheimer's care takes time, plus you need to cater to your loved one's current needs. Instead of preparing for the later stages all at once, it might be better to plan for the future slowly. You can:

• Learn what awaits your loved one and what to expect for yourself – Learn all that you can about what to expect with mid-stage and late-stage Alzheimer's so nothing can take you by surprise. At the same time, educate yourself on what to expect as a caregiver and what resources to use in order to make care more manageable.
• Closely review your finances – As your loved one's disease progresses, you'll likely consider working with at-home caregivers or look for a decent nursing home. As both care options can be expensive, you might want to take a closer look at your financing options.
• Learn professional Alzheimer's care strategies – When new care challenges occur, you'll be better prepared to address them if you are already familiar with official caregiving strategies.
• Develop a support network – Providing care by yourself can leave you physically overexerted and emotionally drained. For this reason, it's important that you have ample support from family, friends, or care professionals.
• Know your care options – Most primary caregivers find themselves unable to keep up with new, arising responsibilities as their loved one's condition is entering its later stages. You'll need to make a choice whether you want to hire professional Alzheimer's care providers to share some of the workload or to move your Mom or Dad to an assisted living facility where they can get 24/7 care. Either way, it will be much easier to make the right decision if you've already researched local care capacities.

At Visiting Angels Boulder, our trained at-home caregivers can provide quality Alzheimer's care for mom or dad and give you peace of mind. Call our Longmont, CO office today and learn more.

Visiting Angels provides quality senior care services in Allenspark, Boulder, Eldorado Springs, Erie, Hygiene, Lafayette, Longmont, Louisville, Lyons, Nederland, Niwot, Pinecliff, Ward and the surrounding areas of Boulder County, CO.