Baycrest

Lisa Raitt BrainMatters • Spring/Summer 2022 • 9 THE HONOURABLE LISA RAITT – Staying hopeful in the face of dementia [Note: The following is excerpted from a November 24, 2021, Facebook post by Lisa Raitt, reprinted with her permission. It details the last two years of her life caregiving for her husband, Bruce, who's battling early onset Alzheimer's Disease. It has been edited for space and clarity.] Bruce started having hallucinations and delusions in fall 2019. In the beginning, it was him suddenly not recognizing who I was. These moments would happen at least twice a week. Sometimes it would pass quickly and sometimes he forced me to leave the house. Next was him just being angry and aggressive. Unbridled fury at people. He threatened my parents and they had to leave the house. He told my son Billy he was going to kill him and chased him. I took the knives out of the house. Spring 2020 brought Bruce seeing his reflection and thinking that it was a friend. We witnessed lashing out again, holes in walls and dents in doors and cars. He confronted us with words and threats and physical intimidation but never personal violence. Often he just decided he was leaving. He wanted to "go home." He would pack up his truck with an odd collection of items and we would be terrified that he was going to find the keys and drive; and also terrified of what he would do if we didn't give him the keys. I made my first 911 call in May 2020. Bruce was brought to the hospital and discharged into my care. Summer 2020, I joined a support group and learned so much. First, I wasn't alone. Second, that I needed to protect myself and my boys; and finally, that talking about this was incredibly helpful. I started virtual care for Bruce with a Baycrest neurologist who gave us some prescriptions to help with the delusions and hallucinations. Fall 2020, sleep became elusive for Bruce. He would be up all night wandering the house and I would wake up in fear that he would fall or walk out the door. I childproofed the doors and watched him on the cameras I had installed in the house. No one was sleeping. Billy moved his bedroom to the basement because Bruce would go into his room at night and disturb him. In October 2020, Bruce went from being physically threatening to being physical with me. He threatened his caregivers and they were afraid but they stuck with us, and I can't thank them enough. In November 2020, I decorated the house for Christmas. One night Bruce just started smashing glass ornaments. The meds caused him to lean to one side and become unsteady. He started to fall at night and started peeing anywhere he wanted to. Still no sleep.

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