We went to Matt’s neurologist Friday for a regular check in appointment

I let him know Matt’s been falling a bit more frequently

My sense is heat may have been contributing a bit to the falls he had as most of them had been outside

Frequency? About once every other week

So we tend to keep him in the house in the cool of the AC, no long ventures out when the heat index is up

That conversation happened Friday, and of course, things seemed to take a turn Saturday

Saturday, he fell twice while in the house

The first time, he was wandering around in the morning

Some how when he was passing by the dining room table, he fell, took a few chairs down with him

No injury….just confusion

Matt spent most of the day in and out of one bed or the other

When he is up, he tends to gravitate to the kitchen, to anything in the sink and to the coffee pot

Most of the time what he is doing is along the lines of what a toddler would do, getting the measuring cups, banging them around a bit, trying to put together things that don’t go together, cleaning dishes but not really cleaning them

I’ve become more comfortable just letting him do these things knowing knives, cleaning fluids, other concerning things are put out of sight, electrical appliances are unplugged

He is engaged, I thank him for cleaning up, perhaps he gets a sense of accomplishment, appreciation

In the midst of that Saturday evening, there was a noise I wasn’t used to hearing, it was a loud thud

In the midst of the usual kitchen sounds of things clanging, water running…….Matt fell, hit his head on something like the counter or a cabinet door

It wasn’t a bad cut, really just a scrape

I think the fall was what shook him the most, the second fall in the day

I got him up, walked him to the bed, checked on his scrape and applied some topical treatment to it

I stayed with him till he calmed down, rubbed his head gently, kissed his cheek

So the falls seem to be increasing now, or so the signs yesterday point to that

The other thing…..choices he is making seem to be getting a bit worse, not sure how to put it exactly

For example, during the night, I removed the toilet paper tube from the toilet

Then later, half a box of tissue was in the toilet, which I also removed

Luckily, he doesn’t seem to flush the toilet anymore……this helps avoid plumbing dramas….and I’m able to observe this change in behavior, his level of hydration

Earlier this week I met up with a neighbor from Sausalito whose husband passed of Lewy 5 years ago or so

We talked about a lot of things, including how do you know when to move into a facility and out of the home

While her experience of when they moved him into a facility was precipitated by her husband launching down a “slippery slope” (injury, infection, hospital to rehab center stay)….she said “you’ll know when its time”

I am taking steps to identify our full range of options to consider, the first big step was taken Wednesday when we met with a placement consultant

The increase in falls inside, the increase in need for bathroom supervision…..these seem to be important signs that we may be getting there soon

It gives me great pause to really embrace this, its not just a wholesale change for him, it is one for me too…..

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