Odd Habits - Aging Mother

Habit, a settled or regular tendency that is often hard to give up. We all have them. Some of them are good habits, others we label as “bad.”

Over the past five years, I noticed several odd behaviors from Mom.

The first is her re-use of paper towels. Every day, she tears off several sheets, uses them, folds it neatly into a square or places them over the sink to use again. I am all about helping to save the environment, but these are wet, dirty and unsanitary. I spend a lot of time throwing them away, only to come back minutes later to find more.

The second is her collection of toilet paper holders. That’s right, the empty roll after the toilet paper has been used. I find them placed behind the garbage can in the bathroom. I was curious and asked her one day what they were for. She responded, “I use them to push down the trash.” Interesting.

The third is her use of a single cup, “my cup” as she refers to it. For five years she has used only one cup. It is a cup that my husband received from his school when he was a teacher. It is insulated, has the image of a bear cub on it and has no top. She rarely washes the cup, most of the time, it is not filled yet Mom takes it everywhere with her. It is not uncommon to find it in various places throughout the house such as the kitchen, bathroom, dining and living room or her bedroom.

Not sure if this is OCD or just eccentric behavior of an aging parent. What do you think?

Questions for you:

What behaviors does the person you care for display?

How do you manage?

Helpful Resources:

10 Difficult Elderly Behaviors and How to Handle Them - AgingCare.com