The Little Pink Pill

Dementia can manifest itself in many ways; there is the obvious one where people can’t remember what they did yesterday; then the ones who revert back to a happy place in their past; some people get panic stricken when confronted with anything new and then there are those who get fixated on the smallest of things and won‘t let them go.
Jean is one of those ladies. She is a sweet lady who lives all on her own in a large house in a remote village’ The only company she gets is from the carers and Meals on wheels, consequently she sits and watches the clock from one visit to the next; because of this it is often very difficult to leave at the end of the call, She will always try to find something to keep you there another five minutes and plead with you to stay.

As a rule, I have gentleman I visit before her that doesn’t really need much care other than to make a sandwich with a cup of tea and definitely does not want to be bothered with any idle chit chat, in fact he barely acknowledges your presence, so I usually finish with him early and spend a bit more time with Jean.

Jean’s fixation is her pills; from the moment I arrive I am harassed about her tablets and she physically shakes as she tells me that she needs them because they stop her shaking. She is right though because within a few seconds of taking the said tablets, the shaking stops; all psychological of course.
However that is not the end of the matter, from then on I get asked ‘ Have I taken my pills? Where are my night pills? What time is someone coming into do my morning pills? This will carry on throughout the thirty to forty minute call. The odd thing is her memory is not bad at all, she can talk about any subject you choose with absolute clarity, knows what happened yesterday and recalls telephone numbers for old friends without looking them up.

Recently I got a call from one of her other carers warning me that there is an extra pill to give Jean from now on, morning and night. So the next evening I enter jean's house and am immediately told about the little pink pill.

‘It’s alright Jean I know’

‘Oh good’

I put the pills in front of her and watch her swallow them with her jelly’

‘How many pills are in here?’

‘Three’

‘Including the little pink pill?’

‘Yes Jean’

‘Oh Good’

Five minutes later

‘Have I taken my pills?’

‘Yes Jean’

‘And the little pink one?’

‘Yes Jean’

‘What about in the morning?’

‘All the carers know about the new medication’

‘Oh Good’

Five minutes later

‘Did I take the little pink pill?’

‘Yes Jean’

And so on…….

After about the fourth time of going through this routine I ask

‘What is the little pink pill for anyway Jean?’

‘It’s supposed to stop me worrying’

‘I don’t think it’s working, do you Jean?’

‘No! I don’t think it is Dear’