Dad with dementia lies and is physically aggressive
It's been a really difficult past few months for my dad. My mom and I are the main caregivers. I learned of his diagnosis just as I was starting my graduate program, so I've only been home more often for the summer.
He was always kind of mean, strict, conservative, harsh, yes, but always spoke poorly of people who hit their children. Its really hard for me to separate the memory of who he was and the reality of who he has the capacity to be now. It's so hard to care for parents who have traumatized even before the diagnoses.
These days it feels impossible. I just watched him get up to hit my mom with a remote mid-conversation, and I went to stop him. He hit me hard in the face. He tried again and again, I kept stopping his arm.
He started screaming that my mom slept with another man. This may have happened with a previous wife of his but we're not sure, definitely not my mom. The other night he said something worse about we tried to kill him, while I am mostly watching him and no such thing has ever happened. I don't know where this came from... but we are terrified he might say this to the wrong person. Are these hallucinations?
I am so confused and horrified and feel terribly alone in this process. I grieve him dearly, but I can't help but feel angry especially after he's hit me for the first time in my adult life.
I know I didn't react the way I should've. But I'm not even 24 yet and didn't already have great coping skills going into this. My next semester starts soon, and I want to be there for him, but now I am scared.
Any words, support, etc would be so appreciated.