As I was thinking about what to write this evening, I started looking back through my communications with my siblings beginning when my dad was in the hospital. When I read them, it put me right back in that hospital room trying desperately to keep my dad awake so he would sleep through the night. My mom and I went to visit dad today and he is having the same sleep issues as he was then. He had been up again wandering during the night and was fast asleep when we arrived. I was able to talk with the caregivers there and his new PCP who saw him the other day. Everyone is aware of the situation and working on trying to reset his clock. They said it’s very common when someone with dementia moves to a new place and is disoriented and more confused. The obvious difference in his current facility is that they are more gentle and allow my dad more freedom to do whatever suits him. We’ll have to wait it out a bit to see if he settles into a schedule. Later, my mom had physical therapy because she gets so dizzy. I told her of my dad’s situation and the team of people at the facility. She said it sounds like caregiving is the culture there. I thought that was a good description. Every employee is involved in overseeing the residents – the CNA’s, caregivers, nurses, laundry people, cooks, and even the executive director himself – and there seems to be a beautiful flow in the process.

I Found God today in the “caregiving culture” of my dad’s facility.