Moving Mom to Long Term Care

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So I showed up at my mother's yesterday morning shortly after 8am. My oldest sister was there, the middle one not there yet. My mother was in the dining room. My sister was frantically trying to pack some clothes and stuff for my mother before she returned to her room. Mom was still in the dining room when my other sister arrived. She took my mother into the lounge and explained to her that the residence did not have enough staff to take proper care of her and that we were moving her. I happened to be walking by at the time and I heard my mother say, "Okay." My thought was, "That was easy." My sister told her they were going for a ride in her car. We never brought her back to her room. My other sister and I followed in our vehicles with some of my mother's belongings. We wanted to make her feel as comfortable as possible with her own bedding, pictures on the walls, etc. When we arrived at the long-term care facility my sister pointed out the exercise room and the chapel. My mother didn't respond. Don't think she knew what was going on. When we got to her room she asked what she was doing there. And... she lost it. Everything in caps is what she yelled, followed by crying (but she has no tears left to fall). YOU MEAN I'M GOING TO LIVE HERE? WHY DIDN'T ANYONE TALK TO ME ABOUT THIS? I WANT TO GO HOME. THIS IS NOT FAIR. EVERYONE IS PUSHING ME AROUND LIKE AN OLD BOOT. The same things, same questions, were asked over and over again. It was quite heartbreaking. My sisters actually left me alone with her for what felt like an hour where I tried to comfort her and also explain to her that she can't walk, isn't eating. She kept saying that she can walk, that she walks all over the place. She hasn't been able to walk in weeks because she is not eating. She has no energy and only wants to sleep. When I told her she wasn't eating she told me to prove it. How the heck do you prove that? I am the baby of the family and she has a special spot for me. She did take my hand at one point, put it against her cheek and said, "It's not your fault." At one point she asked what the name of the place was. I looked to one of the many nurses who came in and out because I was only told once and it was far from my mind at the moment. When the nurse told her the name adding Long Term Care Centre at the end, that's when my mother lost it. She knew what long term care meant, even though we kept telling her she was only there until she gets her strength back. But she is there permanently. She had not yet noticed she had a room mate. I know she'll create a stir about that. I was sent down to my vehicle to get a table and to get my mother her favourite chocolate bar (to appease her even though she shouldn't eat it). I was gone forever because I got freaking lost in this huge facility. It didn't help that I was told the wrong room number AND not told the name of the wing she was in. But everyone there was very helpful. But in the middle of me wandering around a fire alarm went off (a drill) which made me think I had set off an alarm because, like I said, it's a lockdown facility. You need to use a swipe card to get in and out of places. I left first and headed directly home. I texted my sister later and asked how things were. She said my mother was eating the chocolate bar. Then a few minutes later she told me how my mother's body reacted to that. Later she said as she was leaving she went to kiss my mom and told her she had to go home and make dinner. My mother said, "I'm sorry I kept you." And that's how dementia works. Today... she was walking all over the place with her walker. WALKING?! And they got her to take a bath, something the people at the other place were unable to get her to do. Obviously moving her there was the right decision. And the guess that a lot of my mother's complaints (leg cramps, unable to walk) were just her seeking attention seem to be true. She got the attention but I'm betting she hadn't planned on this. So it was an emotional day. I went home and bawled in my husband's arms. But she is in the right place and will hopefully do well and not go downhill. The people that work there are awesome. Sorry this is so long. I could have said a lot more. It's hard to describe my mother's reaction and how bad we all felt for her. I must say that as hard as it was to be left alone with her for so long in that state, I am pleased that my sisters trusted me to look after her. Maybe they realize the difference in our relationship and thought I would be the better person to talk to. The middle sister (the one who works with the elderly for a living) talked to her first and I did take some cues from the things she said and the way she said them. We all have our crosses to bear in this life. They are all trials we need to experience to live, learn and grow. But it is so heartbreaking to see how the elderly live when they really have no life left in them. Peace, my friends.