It has now been two years since my father in law John, died and for ten years before that he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease. My parents in law lived in Gloucestershire which was a two hour drive up the motorway so I always felt I never did enough to help with the day to day caring of my father in law. My mother in law Sheila was exhausted but always said she could cope on her own........
"don't worry about me, I am fine!" Then she broke her hip and had a taste of freedom!!! Soon after that John went into a nursing home.
I always wonder whether if she had had afew days off, nights away, either together or apart, it might have given her more strength to cope for longer.
Before John went into a nursing home I had looked for places to stay, places like The Mede offers, but as I found nothing I decided to set one up myself!
I started Dementia Guest House Care ( as it was first known) in my own home which has masses of steps and realised I had to find a bungalow. With the support from my family we found the perfect place. The Mede has wonderful estuary views, I just love going there and very often if it is empty I enjoy a coffee sitting in the conservatory!
I am a qualified nurse and work part time as a Practice Nurse in a local health centre. This gives me the confidence to know that what ever your health problems I will have some understanding. You may have diabetes, heart disease or asthma. Although I can not give any nursing or personal care I can ensure that if you need help while you are away I can put that in place.
Taking a break from your daily routine is sometimes a hard decision to make. I hope I have helped you start to think about having a break and please contact me for more information, I would be very happy to chat to you and if it's not this year, it may be the next!