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Mandolina Asked January 2021

Mother with dysarthria and possible dementia?

Hello all. So I need some advice. My 72 year old mother lives alone down the road from us a good ten minutes. She’s in a one story rancher set up with lots of neighbors to help. My husband will not allow her to move in with us. We have no other family to take her in. She still owes on her home and had to file for bankruptcy when my dad passed away. I don’t want to get office of aging involved because in our area... once they’re involved they’re ALWAYS involved. Plus I have friends in medical around here who say I do NOT want to get them involved. I guess my issue is if we determine at some point that she cannot live by herself... now what?! I feel like I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place. Probably because I am. Here is her backstory. Any advice is appreciated as far as housing OR advice with regards to medical.


My mom is a bipolar sufferer and has always had a general aphasia about her. All of the women on her side of the family (grandmother, mother, aunts) have all been diagnosed at some point with Alzheimer’s/Dementia. A few weeks ago she started complaining of feeling “wobbly.” So when we went for her annual checkup we let her CRNP know and he gave her some exercises for vertigo and told her to drink more water. Weeks later she calls me in distress fighting to get out words “Lllllllizoooto h-C-T-Z. I’m scared.” Is all I got. Of course I told her to sit down somewhere in the house and to stay out and I called 911 right away for an ambulance. When I called her back to tell her I was on the way and so was the ambulance she said “Oh my word I am so embarrassed.” Then there I stood saying “How the heck did she just go from not being able to say anything to saying a complete sentence clear as day? The EMT’s and ER nurses all said the same thing... when she relaxed... she was able to start talking. She had blood tests, Urinalysis, Chest X-ray, CT Scan of the Brain and MRI of Neck and Brain. Everything came back clear. The only thing was changes to the small ischemic blood vessels and some volume loss. Nothing extensive. Her nurses all recommended that she be on Klonopin more often to see if it helps since she takes it at home for severe anxiety attacks. They put her on it and within the hour she started talking pretty much normally. They said they would do the MRI and if nothing showed up acutely (it didn’t) they would get psych involved in the hospital. That was yesterday.


This morning I get a call from her new Nurse Practioner at the hospital in observation who is only seeing her for the first time. She tells me of the MRI results and says she thinks my mom may have the start of dementia, maybe vascular? She says my mom has only said one full sentence since she met her. I asked her if they still had my mom on the Klonopin and she said no. She didn’t want her on Klonopin as it is highly addictive and may make her dizzy and add to her being a fall risk. I told her, well then she probably won’t see my mom speaking clearly as she was yesterday. She said that’s for psych to look into, but not to get my hopes up that psych will do much of a work up on her. So I called her personal psychiatrist on his cell on a weekend and he thankfully picked up. He stated that once I get her home I should call him with her med list. We could do our own experiment to see if the Klonopin really helps or not. My question is... has anyone else had a parent who was pretty much doing fine and then was diagnosed with sudden Dysarthria with no signs of stroke? If so, any advice on how to deal? Is it possible for Dysarthria to be reversed or minimized again? We are trying to get her into the Memory Clinic for outpatient assessment as well. I’m just afraid that even though she’ll for now likely be able to live by herself... how do I call her and have conversations to check in on her from time to time if she is suffering from this Dysarthria. Any and all advice is appreciated. Also, my mother is not tech savvy at all. So iPads or computers are out.

Pdiane82 Jan 2021
You said that your mom has bipolar . I'm bipolar and the other day I was talking to my psych Dr on a visual appointment and I was having trouble getting things out I was trying to sayhe couldn't understand what I was saying . Just like you couldn't understand your mom he told me that I was bipolar with anxiety manic
Depression. Your mom may be manic . I also think she may be depressed.
Mandolina Feb 2021
We have seen my mom manic and depressed before, but never anything like this. I mean... it could be psych only... but I don’t know. I wish they could bring someone from the memory clinic into the hospital to assess her more closely. Unfortunately it doesn’t sound like they will. Sounds like she’ll have to wait to go to rehab to then set something up. Thanks for your advice!!
sjplegacy Jan 2021
Changes to the small ischemic blood vessels may be quite significant. You use the word dysarthria to describe her speech and language problems. I'm thinking dysarthria and aphasia are related. In either case changes to those ischemic vessels could be the problem. The NPs suspicion of vascular dementia may be correct. An MRI can indicate damage to these vessels. Just because your mom has shown no signs of a major stroke doesn't mean she's never had any strokes. VaD is usually caused by almost imperceptible mini strokes over a period of time that damages these small vessels. The person may never even realize they've had a stroke. It's the very small blood vessels in the brain that are affected by restricting proper blood flow and oxygen to the brain. Having her assessed at the memory clinic is a good step.
Mandolina Feb 2021
Thanks for the info! I appreciate it!

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NeedHelpWithMom Jan 2021
I don’t know the answer to your questions but others may be able to help.

Stick around to view comments.

Best wishes to you and your mom.

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