Communication Malfunction.

Japanese and English are swirling around in this house - not sure if that is good or bad for Okaasan. 
I thought I noticed recently that she was looking very confused by my bad Japanese, and made a mental note that I really MUST communicate to her more clearly. I've read that dementia sufferers gradually lose the ability to understand - at first complex or long sentences, and bit by bit...simpler stuff. Listening to a foreigner's Japanese with all its odd grammer and word choice may be tough for Okaasan.


But yesterday's story shows that sometimes she is having problems with Japanese!


I was out working and collecting dry cleaning. So this is a second-hand story.


Yujiro had lunch with Okaasan.
They discussed whether the roads were ok to walk on, or whether she should stay home yet again.
"I think it's too icy still, sometimes we take you to a shopping center to walk, but maybe tomorrow is better to go out" he told her.


After lunch he was back upstairs...probably playing chess on his smartphone.


30 minutes later Okaasan called from downstairs: "Yujiro! Yujiro! I'm ready! What time are we leaving?".


?????????????????????????
He found her dressed and ready to go. To a shopping center for a walk. :-)


She'd heard "shopping center for a walk", but maybe her brain had latched onto that nice idea and the "sometimes" part was lost....poor Okaasan! Of course he couldn't do anything about it because I had the car....so poor Okaasan had to sit back down again in front of the TV.


The dementia books warn against information overload.
Don't say: I'm just popping out now to the supermarket to get some cheese, because tonight I think I might make that nice pasta sauce and it would be nice to have cheese on top.
Say: I'm going to the supermarket.I will be back soon.


* Toilet accident. In the spirit of fairness on this blog, because afterall I do talk about all sorts of embarrassing "toilet accidents" that Okaasan has. Um....how shall I put this...my advice from this morning's experience...um....DON'T mix two cups of coffee with a bowl of branflakes for breakfast. Bad idea. very. Do middle-aged woman lose bowel control? Oh gawd....I think I may need diapers.