My mom just turned 79 and has thyroidism but I am not sure if hyper or hypo. She is borderline diabetic and has high blood pressure. For the last year or so I have noticed what appear to be signs of depression and just... giving up. She doesn't eat because she says she doesn't feel like it or that she is hungry but doesn't feel like chewing. She gets very dehydrated, weak and lethargic at times. Will giving her vitamin B12 shots or pills help? I am also thinking of putting her on ensure at least twice a day to get at least some nourishment ... please help... I don't want to lose her.
Ana
I totally agree with ALL of the above answers.
AFTER you have at least seen a doctor and have your mom on the right path of heeling!
My mom is having the same problem and I would like to recommend the Essential water- it has electrolytes without all the added sugar that Gatoraid does- my mom just went through something similar and actually had a UTI she went several days without eating/drinking & thankfully after an anabiotic that worked with her strain of UTI she is on the mend -it took seven days for the first round of anabiotic‘s to show it was working -
Anyway, the doctor suggested putting a little bit (ones with low sugar or no sugar) of cranberry juice ( that was suggested because it was a UTI ) you can also add apple juice lemonade anything with just a little bit to make the water taste better and they will drink more water- This seems to be working too. It gave my mom a little variety because all she really likes his water.
All the best because this isn’t easy!
However, your description of Mom sounds like she has health issues and that could be what’s causing her to feel lethargic and depressed. And, even if we were medical professionals here, it would be unethical and could be downright dangerous to guess at a disagnoses or make suggestions on what you and she should do. You need to find out whether she is hyper or hypo thyroid. Different conditions, different treatments. If she is not on meds for her pre-diabetic condition and her hypertension, she needs to seek face to face medical advice. If she is having dental pain while eating, she needs to visit the dentist.
There are meds and treatments for everything you describe. I don’t think Ensure would hurt (serve it cold because it tastes awful warm) but she needs to she needs to see her doctor.
Now, I'm not sure how cooperative your mom is or how involved in her health care you have been or she's willing to have you be but it's important. Not just for these issues but to establish a working relationship with your mom and her medical team so it's not as hard later when a crisis or something major happens or just as she ages and can do less for herself. It's all in the presentation though if you haven't been a part of it. You know her best but I would recommend easing into it, make it feel natural rather than giving her any reason to feel like your taking over (she may feel this way anyway or she may be fine with it), better for both of you to make it a posative thing as best you can and in truth being involved with your parent's medical care at a certain point brings you back into their lives more, creates a reason for regular involvement in each others lives that we often get away from simply because of life. When my mom starts getting upset and concerned about being a burden to her children, we point out that because of her health issues and our desire to be involved in her care we have all been in each others lives more. We see and talk to each other on a much more regular basis and we have always been close but we also have our own families and don't live in the same states, we have spent more time together, in person around her health and that has been good for us. Anyway, take mom to her primary and make sure her primary is the right one, she should be referred to an Endocrinologist at this point by the sounds of it.
but they could be a possibe result of medications. Mom, a retired nurse says B complex with B12 is a great nerve tonic. Bloodwork would show if she is anemic and in need of B12.
It is tough for us to figure out if our depression and fatigue is a fleeting or a natural problem. And it is twice as hard to figure that out for someone else. We are learning more and more about the benefits of enough quality sleep and how sleep deprivation resullts in NOT clearing out the toxins that build up naturally in our bodies during the day. Geriatric doctors in particular are trained to look at our whole person, and determine if symptoms need further diagnosis and/or treatment, or just counseling to help us understand a natural problem of aging.
The fact that you are observant of these cues will be a big help when you see her doctor.
My mom keeps a small spiral notebook and daily makes notes of her sugar, blood pressure, new symptoms. This way, those new or worsening symptoms are ready to present to the doc as data. I'd add in a PLUS section where we record the good times., like what brought a smile, or when improvement is noticed.
For me, the not feeling like eating is real. But I notice times when I don't feel like cooking and cleaning up wind up as being voiced as not feeling like eating.
Could you give your mom the job of nutrition engineer? Working out ways to get the needed nutrition as appetite is less?? Like soup or salad packed with lots of veggies? Perhaps 1/2 serving of each would be enough food packed with high density nutrition. I keep some chopped nuts handy to add interest and protein to my salads and soups. And I'd encourage her to find those small, nutrition packed frozen microwaveable meals or bowls. TV Dinners have really come a long way, baby!!
When I was going through chemo and made it my job to provide my body with the nutrition it needed to get through and get healthy, Ensure helped me so much on the days when all I could do was open a can and drink. But my body craved more and I had to figure out how to do that. At first all raw fruit and veg had to be microwaved or cooked. Then when I could tolerate the raw, I had to pulse the whole salad or cup of soup in the food processor.