elderly man ignoring personal hygiene - depressed ?



L

L Mehl

Guest
A male friend, age 89, is starting to exhibit
noticeable body odor and is wearing the same clothes on
successive days.

Can readers suggest ways to broach the subject and help him
improve his personal hygiene?

Other information: He is taking anti-depression medication
and suffers from constipation, possibly aggravated by this
medication.

Thanks for any help.

L Mehl

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L Mehl <[email protected]> wrote:
> A male friend, age 89, is starting to exhibit noticeable
> body odor and is wearing the same clothes on successive
> days. Can readers suggest ways to broach the subject and
> help him improve his personal hygiene?

What's your relationship?

> Other information: He is taking anti-depression medication
> and suffers from constipation, possibly aggravated by this
> medication.

Might well be 1. depression

or 2. the EFFECTS of the anti-depressant Which psydocs
(MDs) often deny happening.

In some ppl in diminishes motivation (everything seems
"all right" In that case it might help to just to visit
and suggest a wash. It wouldn't have bothered me. Does he
have food in the house? He might not be shopping either.
 
Contrarian <[email protected]> wrote in
news:[email protected]:

> L Mehl <[email protected]> wrote:
>> A male friend, age 89, is starting to exhibit noticeable
>> body odor and is wearing the same clothes on successive
>> days. Can readers suggest ways to broach the subject and
>> help him improve his personal hygiene?

That's the problem with modern medicine. Stinky, smelly
oldsters like this slob get to live to be 89! In the old
days, he would have been dead by 60 and you wouldn't have
to smell him now that he's confused and lazy and just
plain stinky.

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Contrarian --

Thanks.

Relationship is a new friendship.

He lives with his sister and they both keep the house clean
and stocked with food.

I think his motivation is in good shape. He cleans up the
yard and has started planting tomatoes for this season.

L Mehl

"Contrarian" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:y753c.7638$5M.253545@dfw-
read.news.verio.net...
> L Mehl <[email protected]> wrote:
> > A male friend, age 89, is starting to exhibit noticeable
> > body odor and
is
> > wearing the same clothes on successive days. Can readers
> > suggest ways to broach the subject and help him improve
> > his personal hygiene?
>
> What's your relationship?
>
> > Other information: He is taking anti-depression
> > medication and suffers from constipation, possibly
> > aggravated by this medication.
>
> Might well be 1. depression
>
> or 2. the EFFECTS of the anti-depressant Which psydocs
> (MDs) often deny happening.
>
> In some ppl in diminishes motivation (everything seems
> "all right" In that case it might help to just to visit
> and suggest a wash. It wouldn't have bothered me. Does
> he have food in the house? He might not be shopping
> either.

---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-
virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.600 /
Virus Database: 381 - Release Date: 2/28/2004
 
On Mon, 8 Mar 2004 17:06:09 -0600, Justin wrote
(in article <[email protected]>):

> That's the problem with modern medicine. Stinky, smelly
> oldsters like this slob get to live to be 89! In the old
> days, he would have been dead by 60 and you wouldn't have
> to smell him now that he's confused and lazy and just
> plain stinky.

So, Justin, are you going to volunteer to be killed on your
60th birthday so you don't become a confused, lazy, and
stinky burden on society?

-- James L. Ryan -- TaliesinSoft
 
L Mehl <[email protected]> wrote:
> Contrarian --
>
> Thanks.
>
> Relationship is a new friendship.

Then the main burden will fall on the primary
caretaker/nearest relative.

>He lives with his sister and they both keep the house
>clean and
stocked with food.

That's good.

> I think his motivation is in good shape. He cleans up the
> yard and has started planting tomatoes for this season.

Hygiene, or deficiencies thereof, can be caused by many
things in older ppl. I was addressing the depression/meds
issue only (because those are two causes that are often
overlooked)

Can you mention it to the sister? You'll have to be the
judge of that.
 
In article <[email protected]>, Contrarian
<[email protected]> wrote:

> L Mehl <[email protected]> wrote:
> > A male friend, age 89, is starting to exhibit noticeable
> > body odor and is wearing the same clothes on successive
> > days. Can readers suggest ways to broach the subject and
> > help him improve his personal hygiene?

Some medications given to older people cause strong
body odor.

C.
--
Crow
 
>> > A male friend, age 89, is starting to exhibit
>> > noticeable body odor and is wearing the same clothes on
>> > successive days. Can readers suggest ways to broach the
>> > subject and help him improve his personal hygiene?

Give him a rubber hose to attach to the exhaust of his 23
year old Buick that only has 29,000 miles on it. Tell him to
park it in the garage and start the car and think happy,
peaceful thoughts.

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<noticeable body odor and is wearing the same clothes on
successive days.>

Some antidepressants cause more depression; they weaken the
will to fight depression. Maybe the dose is too high.
Regardless, if his behavior changed after taking the
medication, the doc should be told.

He may be so out of it that he's not aware of wearing the
same clothes.

You might suggest to him or his sister, if you are on that
level with them, that he bathe for 20 minutes with 2 cups of
empsom salts and a few drops of peppermint or lavender
essential oil in warm water after a cleansing shower. Epsom
salts = magnesium sulfate.

Most depressed people in this study by Dr. Shealy (He is
credited with invention of the TENS unit) were found to be
magnesium deficient; http://www.healingpeople.com/ht/EN/art-
icles/2000/1/20/356.tmpl?weaselSession
ID=MjE0MTYzOTA3Njo3NDI6MTkyLjE2OC4xLjEwMDoyMjc0MjU0

Another article mentioning magnesium deficiency with
depression and also has suggestions on supplements: http://-
www.healthyplace.com/Communities/Depression/treatment/alter-
native/bra in_chemistry.asp LK
 
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