MOM SLEEPS ALOT!

Hi, Jenny,

If I were in your shoes, I would have a conversation about this issue with your primary care provider. Your doctor will understand what medications your mom currently is on, whether these might cause drowsiness, and what your mom's overall condition is.

I know that in my mom's case, the nursing home staff often put the residents in bed for naps after breakfast and lunch. We requested that they try to keep Mom up as much as possible, although as her lungs failed due to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, she more easily tired. Then there was one of Mom's roommates, who had dementia and always wanted to go back to sleep. In fact, the aides had a hard time getting her to wake up for meals. Other residents with dementia were always up and around. So I'm guessing that individuals with dementia vary in their need/desire for sleep. That's why I suggest talking to your mom's doctor to determine if the sleeping is a natural response or whether she's having reactions to other medications.

Take care!

Dorian

My FIL was sleeping a lot in Nov/Dec. after his hospitalization. He was sick due to this overdose of caumadin, but that confused him greatly as he has moderate/severe Alzheimer's. So after he came home, he could not walk and could not be alert. He slept a lot. We all thought this is stage 7 - the last stage or that he is closing to the end stage! Our visit in late Dec. didn't really make him wake up but he asked my husband why he WAs like this. We told him it is just old age. In Jan., after a few incidents of repairing the house roof, he woke up and got up and walked with a cane! Actually he did decline a little bit in Nov due to Alzheimer's, but not as much as we thought - e.g., he has to walk with a cane ever since (he lost his balance in late Oct.)

He is even more alert after the doctor stopped his medications in late June. So there are other factors that made him sleepy.

You can try to rule out some factors first to make sure your Mom can wake up in the day.
However in end stage, the patient tends to sleep in the day and wake up at night. You need to make sure what is going on and usually ruling out some factors helps.

Regards,

Nina

Thanks fo ryour question Jenny You may want to review our material on the Stages of Alzheimer's A Caregiving Guidelines.

All the best, sue