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My 60-year-old brother has early onset Alzheimer's Disease. He no longer drives, but he is lives in NYC and, for now, he is able to continue walking around the familiar locations within the city independently with minimal problems. However, he tends to lose things (most recently his wallet). Any recommendations for products to help keep small items like phones and wallets securely attached to a person?

My husband from a young age keeps his wallet on a chain on his belt , then in his pocket.

Even without dementia, it makes finding his missed placed wallet easier
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Reply to Anxietynacy
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A watch fob would easily work for the "problem" you mention. However, it would not work to help someone vulnerable on the streets of NYC. I know you know that already, so I won't "go on" about it.
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Reply to AlvaDeer
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SadToWatch Sep 4, 2024
Yes, we know the risks, but confinement while he is still physically active and able to engage with others would be just as risky to his health and well-being as walking in relatively safe parts of NYC at this point. This disease is coming for his essence, so my sisters and I support him living his best life right now, while he can.
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My Mom is 95 yrs old and lives next door to me. She now has mild dementia, memory loss and some bouts of paranoia. I have a RAZ memory phone for her and even though I have purchased a nice, comfortable and easy-to-use neoprene runner's phone belt so that she can have the phone on her at all times and outdoors, she fails to put it on unless I do it for her.

"Operator Error" is the problem with any of those types of solutions. Even if you put an Apple Airtag in his wallet, he will still lose it. What will happen the first time he has a memory blip while out and about and cannot remember where he is or where he lives and doesn't think to ask someone for help or use his phone to call? This is exactly what happened to my friend's Mom who had a blip while simply driving home from the vet: she got lost for 14 hrs and didn't once think to stop and ask for help or call her daughter. That's what dementia does to people.

All this to say maybe consider "security devices" a waste of time and money and go directly to a more reliable solution, like a good facility or a companion aid? He will need it eventually, anyway. Why wait to scramble for it in a crisis?
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Reply to Geaton777
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SadToWatch Sep 4, 2024
Thanks for your insight. I have bought him a wristband with contact information, but he doesn't wear it. And he would rather die in a crisis than be stuck in a facility right now while he still enjoys walking for hours on end in the city, so we are honoring his wishes to remain as independent as possible. Fortunately, he lives with a partner, who is not healthy enough to walk for miles at a time like my brother does, but there are other friends, and he was even out with a few of them at a museum and restaurant when the wallet disappeared. This is a tricky stage and we are taking it one day, and one mini-crisis, at a time. It's so hard to know the day will come when he will have no choice but to live in a more confined environment.
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