My dad is entering the end stage of dementia and does not want to eat, even his most favorite things. He also started a water obsession when he stopped smoking a year ago. He could drink 10 glasses of water and beg for more. This only happens between midnight and 6:30 a.m. Of course, after that he will sleep all day and if I try to get him up to drink water he cusses me out and REFUSES to get up--I'm exhausted. His Dr said there is no physical reason for the thirst and it is a typical dementia obsession. All his labs are excellent. Then with all this water comes endless overflowed diapers (Yes, even extra padding inserts). I could change his bed and his clothes up to 4x a day no matter what I do or how often I bring him to the bathroom. Sometimes I will dress him, change his bedding and 20 minutes later he is soaked from his armpits down to his knees (from laying down on a waterproof pad). There are times I try to get him to eat and tell him when he eats he can have water but he says, "No... " and refuses to cooperate. We can sit there for 45 minutes and he pretends to eat with nothing on his fork...he pretend eats basically. He's incredibly smart and stubborn. He will drink Glucerna but I noticed it's only 180 calories a container, but then again this contributes to the non-stop flooding of my home. I'm a wreck and to be quite honest he was a horrible person his whole life, and I was raised by my adoptive father. So this has been doubly hard. I guess my questions are: 1) How do I get him nutrition? 2) How do I keep him dry...? 3) Is there a certain type of dementia specialist that can help. I'm not sure what the protocol is here. I can't just let him starve.
He's on medical-medicare. I am not working because I was furloughed due to Covid-19. I really can't afford extra nurses. Thank you for any help.
"A gauze prefold diaper with 3 baby diaper prefolds inside, snugly pinned on, and a roomy but snug fit pair of plastic pants keep my bed dry most nights and I usually wet 2+ times a night. For daytime I like Abena m4s and can usually get 10+ hours without needing a change. Some minor leaking at night or during the day isn’t unusual but overall this combination works well for my 24/7 use."
As for his diet - at some point swallowing often becomes difficult for those with dementia, it could be that he won't eat because he can't eat what you are offering and he may need to be given a modified diet. Since he drink you could try smoothies and supplements like boost or ensure while you are waiting to have a swallow study done by a speech and language pathologist.