Wife needs help and suggestions

[Geegee-KEY]

Now that my husband has been diagnosed with early stage Lewy Body Dementia we are going to have to adjust the way we camp.  He has always been in charge of hooking up the trailer, sway bars etc. and setting up the outside. On our last trip it was evident his confusion and memory issues  will make it challenging to continue with a trailer.  I am wondering about a motorhome specifically the Winnebago 35B.  I am not concerned about driving it but am wondering if I can take care of setting up and tearing down once we get to a campsite.  In other words how simple is it.  I want to hear from owners not dealers.  Thanks for any help or suggestions you can offer.

 

[Seilerbird]

Many women set up RVs without issues. It is pretty easy. And every campground and RV park has lots of campers who would be willing to help you if you had a problem.

 

[Lou Schneider]

I'm sorry to hear about your husband's problems.  But rest assured if you can connect and disconnect a garden hose, you can set up and tear down an RV at  campsite.

A checklist really helps make setup and teardown become a routine.  Here are the highlights:

1) Park the RV so it's level.  If you're getting a motorhome, get one with automatic or semi-automatic leveling jacks.

2) Run out the slideouts

3) Plug the electrical cord into the park pedestal

4) Connect the water hose to the park spigot and the motorhome's inlet

5) Connect the sewer hose to the park drain and the RV's sewer outlet

6) If you're using the park's TV connection, run that cable

7) Put out the awning, chairs, etc.

 

[Woodyt]

I just lost my mother to dementia and my mother in law has dementia.  Setting up an RV would be the least of my worries.  Not being in a familiar setting is very discomforting to dementia sufferers.  My mother would get confused just by turning a corner in a hallway, I cant imagine taking someone with dementia to a new campgrounds on a regular basis.

 

[RVMommaTo6]

I'm sorry to hear about your husband, that must be difficult on you. I wish you both the best.

 

[UTTransplant]

I wish you the best. As for a motorhome, they are easier to set up than a TT. I can set ours up by myself pretty easy. Backing into a tight space without a guide can be challenging, but it just means you get out to look some. Make sure you have side and backup cameras to help you. Towing the car as a flat tow makes it easy to connect and disconnect. You can do it.

 

[Larry N.]

Not being in a familiar setting is very discomforting to dementia sufferers.  My mother would get confused just by turning a corner in a hallway, I cant imagine taking someone with dementia to a new campgrounds on a regular basis.

Certainly that confusion is there, but it can, depending on the individual, be managed rather well for several years. My dad had multi-infarct dementia, and I took him on an airline flight from Denver to Oregon, to visit his sister, who also had dementia at that time. My brother took him (in a car) to a family reunion from Denver to north central Kansas.  There were some odd happenings on occasion, but it wasn't an unmanageable problem for the first three years or so after mom died. Only his last year or so might have been a problem, but it was certainly doable for a while.

One thing to watch, though, as he gets further into the disease, is a tendency for dementia sufferers to wander around and get lost, even getting up in the middle of the night and wandering around.

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

3) Plug the electrical cord into the park pedestal

Lou's list is a good one.  However, he's simplified Step 3 way too much.  You can't assume that park power pedestals are working correctly.  They are sometimes wired incorrectly by "park handymen" instead of by real electricians who know what they are doing.  Even if they were wired correctly when new, they are exposed to the weather and can deteriorate over time.

Fortunately, it is neither complicated nor expensive to test the park power pedestal.  Here's an 8 minute video from the Family Motor Coach Association that shows what you need and how to use it to stay electrically safe:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Led8UIMtbI8

Good Luck!

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

One thing to watch, though, as he gets further into the disease, is a tendency for dementia sufferers to wander around and get lost, even getting up in the middle of the night and wandering around.

By an odd coincidence, my local TV station just carried a story about a 75 year old man with dementia who wandered off into some woods, but who was quickly found by authorities alive and unharmed because of a tracking device he was wearing.  Here's more info on those:

https://www.alzheimers.net/8-8-14-location-devices-dementia/

 

[HappyWanderer1]

Not long ago, I lost a close friend to dementia. After his initial diagnosis, they gave up their fifth wheel for a park model. They were able to extend his camping experience for many years, although at a seasonal site.

He was recently retired and they had just begun their dream of traveling the country pretty much full time. Sometimes life just isn't fair.

To the OP,  all the best as you begin this journey.

 

[Gordiegaffer-WO]

i do my set up a little different i get to the site and check where everything is and back in
set parking brake and level
i than hook up electric water and sewer ( i am 6'5" so it is easier to hook up before i deploy the slides
than put out chairs and pour a cold one