Thanks, Richard, for reading and for taking the time to reach out. But, don’t thank me. Angela, the RN who offered that comforting perspective to me, is the person who deserves thanks.

My father also lived through the painful process of seeing the love of his life fading away. I got a dose of it, too, after he passed. When Mom slipped out of the assisted living facility, crossed the highway on foot and was headed for a cliff over the Pacific Ocean, they informed me that they couldn’t keep her safe. So, I moved in for 10 weeks, until a room at the memory care center opened up.

No one can possibly understand the stress, exhaustion, and heartbreak of one-on-one care for a loved one with dementia unless they’ve actually done it. So, my heart goes out to you.