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Old 09-17-2011, 09:24 PM
 
Location: San Antonio
522 posts, read 1,127,041 times
Reputation: 340

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excellent news, i was thinking about this post throughout the day. i'm glad to hear that despite the frustration and his current condition he is finally home safe with his family.
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Old 09-17-2011, 10:08 PM
 
Location: Boerne area
705 posts, read 1,752,553 times
Reputation: 861
Followed this thread today, glad to hear the news. Please let us know what happened when you are able.
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Old 09-17-2011, 10:14 PM
 
502 posts, read 929,719 times
Reputation: 405
Glad it worked out...
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Old 09-17-2011, 10:17 PM
 
1,366 posts, read 4,466,748 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by zhugeliang1 View Post
This had better be the first and only time he does this.
ok, we don't need the scolding or the judgement, thanks...
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Old 09-17-2011, 10:32 PM
 
1,366 posts, read 4,466,748 times
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OK, I am home...


My dad was in shock after finding his brother... He was just sitting on the couch, not moving, he was so emotional about what could have happened... I kept telling him "Dad, you did it, you found him, let's focus on Tio being home and not what could have happened"... But it was hard for dad to get past it... I was at Mom's for about 2.5 hours, by the time I left dad was doing better, but still very quiet...


Now, on to my uncle... This is the first time something like this has happened... My uncle has been driving his same route for years, literally... Usually he starts out at Jack in the Box for breakfast/coffee, then Goodwill, then HEB for more coffee, then home... If he feels up to it he may go the Barnes and Noble by Ingram but then it's home...


We have known for sometime that the day was going to come when we needed to take his keys away, the thing is, there are certain aspects where the man is still sharp as a tack... Even the EMT's today said that he was very sharp and quick and they found it hard to believe he had gotten himself lost... However, there are other aspects where we can definately see that he is progressing in his dimentia...

Today my uncle was the worst we have ever seen him, we considered that maybe he had a mini stroke, but the EMT's checked him out to be fine and did not see reason to transport him...

He seems to have made it to Goodwill and to HEB... We are thinking he then wanted to go to Barnes and Noble, missed the exit and continued on 410... The HOP IN he called from was a Chevron DBA Hop in, it was Military and Marbach... He was saying his battery died, but it apparently didn't as he continued on his way... We found a map in his car that some good samaritan had drawn for him... It showed Lackland area and was telling him how to get back to Culebra Rd...

When my father found him, he was on Culebra headed toward the house... And apparently, my unlce has no recollection of losing almost 36hours of his life... He thinks that instead of leaving at 1030am on Friday, he left home at 1030am this morning, on Saturday... He keeps saying that his battery did die and that he stopped at a garage and that they didn't have a battery but he made them order one and they charged him $17.50 for it and that my uncle installed it himself... The battery in his car is an old battery, the one my dad had bought for him a while back...

He also claims that he told my aunt he was leaving and was going to be gone for 2-3 days... That he wanted to go and see his friends and that he forgot what town he was in, but it was 150 miles away from home... He claims he called my aunt and checked in with her and she was fine with him being gone...

He found it hysterical that we had MISSING ELDERLY posters made... We told him several times he was missing and he insists he was not, that he left this morning, not yesterday... He says he was glad we atleast picked out a good picture of him and he kept saying he was a handsome devil... LoL

Tio does not remember calling home at 5am, saying he was scared, saying he was hungry or saying he was tired... He claims he was always fine but when we show him the map that people drew for him with directions, he has no idea where it came from...

When I was leaving I went over to him and hugged him and kissed him and told him I loved him and he said "It was great to see you Mija, so glad we got together, we have to do this more often"... He thought we were all there for a BBQ...

Needless to say he will not be driving again but trying to convince him of this is going to be another very long and hard struggle... My dad takes him out 2-3 times a week and one of his daughters will have to go over and take him out another 1-2 days a week, so he doesn't feel that he is losing his independance, so to speak...

This was a very trying time for our whole family and again, I just want to say thank you to everyone who kept us in your thoughts and prayers and who may have taken the time look for his car...
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Old 09-17-2011, 11:24 PM
 
14,637 posts, read 34,869,877 times
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So glad he's not hurt or God forbid, dead. Still a very bittersweet story. I hate dementia and Alzheimer's. Hopefully your family will figure out how to keep him safe and also let him enjoy his life. It's tough. All the best to you guys.
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Old 09-18-2011, 05:34 AM
 
3,805 posts, read 6,327,686 times
Reputation: 7860
Thanks so much for the update. I'm so glad his physical condition is such that he didn't have to go to the hospital. What an ordeal for all of you.
We had to take the keys away from my Dad when his Parkinson's got so bad it was affecting his reflexes. He didn't like it but understood that it had become dangerous for him to drive. I hope in time, your Tio will accept his limitations. Dementia is far different from Parkinson's though. Best of luck to you and all your family.
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Old 09-18-2011, 09:26 AM
 
Location: san antonio texas
1,803 posts, read 2,608,665 times
Reputation: 623
good stuff, glad hes home safe!

as TR said, maybe invest in a gps tracker for the car in the event of a re-occurrence?
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Old 09-18-2011, 10:09 AM
 
Location: San Antonio, TX
8,399 posts, read 22,879,576 times
Reputation: 4435
Actually, they make small GPS tracking devices that he could carry on his person that might be even a better idea; that way if he gets separated from his vehicle you would still be able to find him. Granted, he would have to have the device on him, but if it's critical maybe two such devices (a personal one and one for his car) would be in order to avoid a similar situation from arising again in the future.

Regardless, it is great news that your uncle is home safe and sound!

Cheers! M2
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Old 09-18-2011, 06:00 PM
 
Location: South Side
3,770 posts, read 8,248,727 times
Reputation: 2876
I am glad that you found him safe and sound. Best wishes to you and your family ~
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