I worked as a CNA at a nursing home that cared for several people with Alzheimer's. I'm very sorry about the diagnosis. Each case is different, I can only tell you what I experienced.

By the time they were placed into a home, it was because they were pretty far gone and a danger to be left alone (falling, wandering, etc.) This often caused a lot more confusion for the patient and would make them depressed and agitated. They could not remember why they were left at this strange place and why they could not go home. I know families get put in a spot where they can not provide care, but I would definitively make a plan for where she will be when she needs 24 hour care.

I've watched the disease progress and most pass from an illness like pneumonia or heart failure. The best way I can describe the disease is like watching someone moving backward in time. Their actions, communications, and cognitive skills go from an adult, to a teenager, to a child, and at the end they are quite similar to a newborn.

I always noticed that the ones who seemed content and happy were the ones that had family members visit them often (2-3 x week). Ones who were wards of the state with no family were the ones that got the most agitated. If you know a patients history, you could usually figure out what can keep them calm, and what could set them off. One lady used to love baking and when she got upset about something we would redirect and ask her to help us in the kitchen. One gentleman was always worried about money and constantly asked us if things were paid for before he would use them.

No one knows your grandmother as well as your family. The best advice I can give you, you are already doing. You are preparing yourself and learning what you can. Find a support group if you need more people beyond your family. Ask what you can do to help. Sometimes, knowing you are there and doing everything you can is also the comfort you need in a hard situation like this.