Spitting Part 4

I talked about Dad's habit of spitting here, here, and here. It hasn't stopped being a problem; I just thought talking about it was getting boring.

I have since learned from the Lewy Body Caregivers group, that problems with spitting are not uncommon with dementia and are related to swallowing problems called dysphagia where small amounts of food and drink get into Dad's lungs. This causes his lungs to create excess phlegm that he coughs up and spits.

I think we are getting somewhere with Dad about where he spits. He has been fussed at by every adult in the house and put in "time out" without TV. What we would like him to do is to spit into a tissue and throw the tissue away. What Dad did this morning was to pick up the trashcan next to his chair and spit in it. That wouldn't have been too bad except a string of spit formed between the trashcan and his mouth. He used his hand to wipe the spit from his mouth, then wiped his hand on the furniture.

Two steps forward and one step back.