This spring, we finally got an official diagnosis for my grandmother’s memory problems: Alzheimer’s disease. The doctor started her on Aricept and encouraged the family to find a Senior Care Center for social stimulation.
My grandmother was not happy about this development. She called it the “looney bin” and “old lady jail” and put her foot down: she was not going to go. We coaxed and cajoled; we blamed it on the doctor. Finally, we put our collective feet down.
The staff gave us a copy of the schedule, and we tried to get my grandmother excited about upcoming events: a walk on the boardwalk, musical entertainment, a hairdresser and nail technician, birthday celebrations, and more. It sounded a lot like a summer camp, with exercise, arts and crafts, and day trips!
On her first day, we got to take a little tour. We saw the dining room, the nurse’s room (where the staff can test my grandmother’s blood sugar and even get blood samples for her doctors), and the main sitting room. I wonder if the nervousness I felt was the same nervousness my mother felt when she sent me off to kindergarten? I was worried that my grandmother would be lonely or afraid, and hoped she’d find some friends.
I’m not going to lie to you — my grandmother STILL hates going to “old lady jail” (also known as the Allaire Senior Center in Wall, New Jersey). Every morning that she’s scheduled to go, she fights. She complains. But in the end, she puts on her shoes and she goes. But we have seen a definite improvement in her memory because of the interaction and stimulation. After her first few sessions, her reports on the day were vague. She couldn’t remember what she did at the looney bin. Now that she’s been going for a few months, she’s able to recall more and more of her day.
And that’s worth all the fighting, all the complaining, and everything else.