Reestablishing a Relationship with Your Parent in a Nursing Home
February 13, 2008 by Mary Emma Allen
Filed under Diseases & Conditions
Moving one’s parent to a nursing home, even an assisted living one, can present traumatic experiences for both of you. Sometimes you’ve even made a promise,“I’ll never do that,” when the subject of nursing homes is brought up.
However, the time comes, especially when a parent experiences Alzheimer’s, that you cannot care for them in your home or their home. I found this with Mother and Auntie. They needed the care they would receive from specially trained medical personnel. In our case, my business took me away from home frequently so arranging home care was difficult.
I found, as Deb did at The Yellow Wallpaper, that you have a different situation to adjust to. She describes so beautifully, in It’s Been Awhile…, the establishment of a new relationship with her mother who now lives in a nursing home,
Remaking the relationship takes time. You just have to keep showing up and hope that, even though she can’t remember your last visit, she knows in some way you’re around, that she hasn’t been abandoned.
This describes so well the relationship I found developing with my mom and aunt after they moved to nursing homes. Our relationship was different, yet it still was laced with love and hugs.
(c)2008 Mary Emma Allen
