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Husband has Alzheimer’s and I am full time caretaker. Keeping him entertained is getting more and more difficult. He’s tired of me. Need to get him out of the house on his own to socialize.

Have you called your local council on aging? Sometimes they can give you guidance and pointers. Ask your doctor about any programs they are aware of that provide transit to centers for some day care. Check with local senior centers. Just ask EVERYONE you can find for guidance. Call a local care facility and say "Sorry to bother you but do you know of....................".

I think it is so important to do this, giving yourself a bit of respite, but I ALSO think that you may be coming to the time when you need to at least just begin to explore, consider, weigh how long you can go on doing one on one home care. If you can't afford someone coming in weekly to relieve you it is going to get too tough. At some point you may endanger your own life. If something happens to YOU, what then for him?

I sure wish you luck. This is such a universal problem with so very few solutions.
I hope you let us know if you find anything.
Helpful Answer (7)
Reply to AlvaDeer
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Sounds like your husband would be a perfect candidate for an Adult Daycare Center. You can take your husband there 5 days a week and up to 8 hours per day. They will feed him breakfast, lunch and a snack and offer all kinds of fun activities to keep him busy while there.
Most also offer a spa day where they will shower him, shave him and even give him a haircut if needed.
They are wonderful. Of course there is a cost(but worth every penny)and if money is an issue they do offer financial help as does the VA if your husband is a veteran.
Most will also send a small bus to pick him up if you're not able to bring him yourself.
And most importantly it will give you the much needed breaks that you need and deserve, to get things done that you need to and want to.
So please call your local Adult Daycare Center today and get him signed up to go. You won't regret it.
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Reply to funkygrandma59
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You can check into your community for your local senior center they usually are open from 8am to 4pm . And they usually serve a little lunch and some have transportation going back home .. or does he have any friends or family that could take him for the day here and there to visit or go out and catch up ?
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Reply to Trixipie
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Check with your local library they have adult programs in the day time that are geared toward seniors. The programs vary, but sometimes they are easy crafts, etc.
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Reply to Jhalldenton
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TouchMatters Oct 20, 2024
This question isn't 'just' about a senior; it is about a person with Alzheimer's. Do you know the difference?

Libraries are not equipped to manage a person with dementia.
This is what day care programs are for - with trained staff.
Some people with dementia are wonderers ... they wonder off - outside and into the streets. They have no idea what they are doing ... where they are going.

A person with Alz needs supervision.
(9)
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There probably are - for a price or covered by a long term care policy - BUT you are not the entertainer!!! Stop that. Keep stacks of magazines, coffee table picture books, vary the tv shows from the old ones to nova or History, get an echo - a cheap little device that works with wifi that is hooked to internet and will tell stories, play any music in the world, play any radio station in the world, tell you jokes, whatever you tell it to do it will do, create “play” in zip lock bags - like large beads to string, pipe cleaners, easy puzzle, play dough, dice, coloring pages, water paints and pad…there are thousands of things you can put into the bags and put them where he can get them himself. Don’t put them all out at once, change them every few days. You can get really creative here. And get some relieve a couple times a week- either a friend who will stay or pay for an aide. Look up learning centers for preschoolers or elementary and get more ideas.
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Reply to RetiredBrain
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You need to do your research.
Look for day-care centers.
If you do not know how to do this, ask a friend or neighbor to assist you.
Contact your City Hall, Senior Services Dept.
Call his MD and ask them for referrals.
Call the Alz Assocation and ask them.

It depends on the area you live in - how small or large; how close social services are located. First get someone to help you do this basic research.

Gena / Touch Matters
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Reply to TouchMatters
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Many areas have Adult Day Programs. Typically a bus or van will come pick up the participant and a breakfast and lunch are both served during the time as well as a snack.
Contact your local Senior Service Center and see if they have such a program or are aware of one.
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Reply to Grandma1954
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Some adult day care centers may offer services and food for free, depending on eligibility criteria. Call your local county to find out.
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Reply to Patathome01
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You need to check in your local area.
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Reply to brandee
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Where do you live, please: City, small town, or rural? It helps so much when "Profile" is filled out, as more insightful ideas can be offered if we know. I have noticed in Ads recently, a huge increase in 'Day Programs" for those with Memory disorder. This seems to be both a full day offer or half-day, and it's a cost effective way to give the Caregiver a break while the LO still resides at home. What have you explored in your town or city? These "All Day Activity Centers" for the memory impaired are being created rapidly!
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Reply to fluffy1966
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MardenT: Look for adult day programs in your locality. Many may offer free transportation.

Also, kindly fill out your AgingCare profile as that will enable posters to better assist you.
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Reply to Llamalover47
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Poster asked specifically for programs ‘for elderly men’. In general elderly women are in the greatest numbers. The best you can do is ask around for programs with SOME men, and perhaps if can they sit at a separate table, with car magazines rather than those geared to women.

I knew a program for older men that was geared about bench top equipment. It folded with insurance issues when a guy lost a finger. Not a good place for socialising!
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Reply to MargaretMcKen
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Do a search for a Council for The Aging in your county. They have Adult Day Care Prograns and often have transport available.
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Reply to NoTree
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I had similar issues dealing with my hub. Even going to my dr appt was an issue so I found that Easter Seals has a senior program for those with cognitive issues inc alzheimer’s. It’s like adult day care and they could be dropped off at 7am and picked up by 530 for $65 a day! It included meals breakfast snacks and lunch and planned activities. Best part was it was a locked down area with outside space and gardens. A nurse in staff also could administer needed meds and did checks on their temps, blood pressure etc . As a now retired nurse I found it a wonderful safe place that let me breathe and have some much needed time for me.
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Reply to Db2024
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Check at your local Senior Service Center, ask if they have or know of an Adult Day Program in your area.
Typically a bus or van will pick up participants in the morning, bring them to the program and they get a breakfast a lunch and a snack and do a variety or activities depending on the level of cognition. Some may go on an outing, some may do art projects, garden...
The participants are then taken back home.
When I had my Husband in the program he would get picked up by 9 am and was home by 4.
If there are no programs in your area you can ask if there are any other programs that you/he would qualify for. Some programs might provide a caregiver a few hours a week. That would give you a break.
If your husband is a Veteran you can contact your local Veterans Assistance Commission or your States Department of Veterans Affairs and they can help determine if your husband would qualify for any benefits through the VA. It might be a little or a LOT depending on where and when he served. (and if he is a Veteran the VA now will pay a spouse as a caregiver. With some of that you could hire a caregiver a few hours a week that would add to what the VA would provide (they would provide a caregiver a few hours a month, not a lot but it does help)
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Reply to Grandma1954
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