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My mom has been through multiple illnesses and at only 75 has been bedbound for a little over a year now. She got a blood clot in one leg but eliquis resolved it and seems to be keeping her from getting another. She does have periodic leg swelling and foot drop and muscle atrophy. She says her feet feel like she has socks and shoes on but she doesn't. She refuses all attempts at pt and is in denial that not getting up at all is a bad thing. She's been on and off hospice so it just wasn't a priority. Now, it's just too far gone. She's in an ALF that does a great job with her - she's not had any bedsores or skin breakdown which is a miracle because her skin is very fragile from some of her health issues. We didn't think she'd make it this long but now I'm beginning to wonder what else goes wrong when someone doesn't get up at all for a long period of time. I'm sort of afraid to know but do feel that ultimately knowledge is power. I can't find much on the internet - so any experience out there?
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Like totally bed bound? Do they not get her up at all, even to sit in a wheelchair? It's great that her AL is able to care for her but I wonder if the higher level of care provided in a nursing home might not be more appropriate, most ALs are just not equipped and staffed to provide for someone with her needs.
Beyond that, has she been evaluated for depression?
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onemanband Jan 2020
Yes, totally bed bound. They try mightily to encourage her to get up or out but she refuses. Basically, she has "taken to her bed" and she's not leaving until she dies. That actually has seemed imminent quite a few times over the last year but she seems to have a crisis and then recover and stabilize Rinse and repeat every month or so. Her ALF is a higher level of care than most and they are staffed well (usually 3:1 or even 2:1 during the day, it is priced accordingly...) so I'm keeping her there as long as I can. I do think she's depressed, she is on antidepressants and therapy she would refuse. She was living independently until she got ill and then she's just had a series of illnesses and problems (and my father died) so she's taken a very steep slide in only 15 months. I'm just worried about what else is going to happen. The blood clot sort of took me by surprise and then I was like, well duh, of course. So I'm just wondering if anyone else has done this and what other medical issues might arise. My mother will never walk or stand again that much I know. My mother is not and has never been a very social person and while I and the ALF try to get her to join others in the dining room or activity room, she flatly refuses. I don't think she will live a very long time but I of course have no way of knowing. I didn't think she'd survive all she's been through and she's still here. But I decided a while ago that I wasn't going to spend her last months on earth fighting with her so I just don't push the issue with her.
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It depends on what you are asking? Are you wondering if she'll walk again? The longer she doesn't, the less likely she ever will.

Are you wondering how long she can live being bed bound? People live years and decades bed bound. Some people that are bed bound as children live until a rip old age.
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Muscle atrophy, dizziness to name 2
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