My wife has advanced AD. I am 72 and her sole caregiver at home. I have her on an alternating pressure mattress for most of the day and on a wheelchair with a Roho Mosaic Seat Cushion when she's not too tired to sit for a while.I have her wearing pull-up briefs with booster pads for occasional incontinence because she's able to stand long enough for me to put them on. I have washable absorbent pads on her bed for occasional leaks.Her speech is unintelligible due to aphasia and she's not able to follow instructions.Because she can't tell me she needs to go to the bathroom and there are no other cues, how often should I help her to the bathroom?Also, how do you tell if a brief is soiled and needs to be changed?I am physically able to help her and mentally determined. I just need to learn more about how.
The briefs will appear yellowish on the inside and feel heavier, depending on how much urine. If it's easier, consider tab-style disposables.
You should also be able to smell if her brief is soiled enough to have to change, or even feel the front of it to feel it's very warm from the pee, just like you would with a little one still wearing diapers. But if you're taking her to the bathroom every 2 hours you most likely won't have to change her very often, except once or twice a day like you would your underwear.
And might I also suggest that if the walk to the bathroom gets to be too much for your wife, you may want to invest in a bedside commode that you can keep next to her bed, or chair where she sits.
Bless you for being there for your wife when she needs you the most.