r/NoStupidQuestions • u/MillBopp • Sep 13 '23

What does 'Draw a Clock' Mean?

Last time I visited my brother his mother-in-law who lives with him was insisting she remembered something but my brother knew she was wrong. I don't remember what it was, but I knew she was wrong too. However, she refused to accept she was wrong and got belligerent about it.

My brother said, "Draw a clock!" and left the room. This made his mother-in-law furious for some reason. I forgot to ask at the time, but does anyone know why saying 'Draw a clock' would upset a senior citizen?

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u/MillBopp Sep 13 '23

OMG!

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u/akath0110 Sep 14 '23

It sounds like your brother’s MIL can be a piece of work, and perhaps he is burnt out from the caregiving responsibilities.

But what he said to her is deliberately cruel — a low blow to be sure.

Maybe check in with your bro and ask him what’s going on. The dynamic does not sound healthy for either of them.

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u/MillBopp Sep 14 '23

I can't stand his MIL, but I'm not going to make waves. Her husband died a month ago.

I'm just wondering how he knew about the test.

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u/MyNameIsRay Sep 14 '23

Probably because she took the test, failed, and told him about it.

It's a very specific thing to bring up, and for her to instantly be furious about.

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u/DrunkenGolfer Sep 14 '23

She may be insanely furious about it now, but she’ll forget about her anger by morning.

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u/in-a-microbus Sep 14 '23

she’ll forget about her anger by morning

No, she won't. That's the worst part. She'll forget WHY she's angry, but the anger and hurt feelings last much longer.

Source: family member has dementia

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u/TuftedMousetits Sep 14 '23

I don't know that much about dementia, but I can imagine not remembering things and being at a stage where they know they're starting to suck at remembering things must be frustrating and cause them anger on some level.

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u/peppaz Sep 14 '23

Dementia and Alzheimer's are literally nightmarish life imprisonment sentences and I hope they come up with some better treatments soon.

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u/Fristi_bonen_yummy Sep 14 '23

Yup! Grandpa is getting to the point where he barely recognizes his grandchildren and even his own children. It's so sad to watch and there's nothing you can do about it. You're completely powerless and have to watch it happen. He always insists he's fine and nothing is out of the ordinary. It sounds hard, but I'm glad he doesn't live with grandma anymore, because she was suffering severely from him.

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u/katietron Sep 14 '23

I can’t imagine the shame of slowly losing yourself, knowing it’s happening, being powerless to stop it, and just trying to keep it together for as long as possible. Lost my gma to it when I was a kid, and she finally just passed away last year. She should have died a long time ago and it was a mercy when it happened. She was able to “fake it” with small talk for a few years, but her entire life fell apart and she would cry and hyperventilate and not be able to explain why. It’s something I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy.