Is this a dementia thing or possibly a pain thing?
My grandma was in a rehab facility for 60 days and there they didn't really put her to sleep. They had her on a 3 day cycle meaning she was up for 2 days then crashed for the entire next day then started the process again. She wasn't healing so the doctor removed the cast and told me to get her out of there. (there were other issues going on. Strange bruises on her body, low blood sugar where she'd literally pass out completely and they wouldn't notice, and refusing of eating). When she came home I put her back on a daily schedule including bed times. She's sleeping getting up a few times for the bathroom but that doesn't bother me. What bothers me is she yells out at night. She yells, "Help me. Help me!" and does so over and over again. She sleeps through this but I don't. It usually doesn't last long but lasts long enough to wake me up and make me look at the monitor until she goes back into her sleeping and snoring stage of sleep. She has neck pain as she's overdue on a nerve blocker she gets in her neck and also has leg pain as its' still healing from a broken bone. I'm just worried this is a dementia thing and will continue forever. Has anyone else dealt with this and if so did you have any way to really deal with it and make it happen less? Right now I have her on advil at night and it seems to help so it might just be a pain thing. I have a rice hot compress on her neck, and been giving her advil during the night. I don't really want to drug her to sleep although I know most dementia patients take something to help them sleep. Its not that she isn't sleeping but instead is more crying out while sleeping.
Has your gma's doctor suggested anything? Could be she was crying out for help in rehab and went ignored and now is traumatized
Hope things improve
My grandpa was having a hard time with sleeping restfully at his nursing home and they added melatonin to his regimen which seemed to help him a bit. He did not call out at home (though he'd often be up 5 or more times a night) but once he went to the nursing home, he did that too.
I hope your grandma feels better soon and gets on a better sleep cycle; it is so hard to get a good night's sleep when you are getting startled awake!
I'm inclined to suspect pain. It sounds like you are trying to keep on top of that. Check with her doctor about the limits to the doses of the things you are using, and increase her dose if you can. Ask about other things that might help with the pain. Is she getting that nerve blocker soon?
Dementia itself cause sleep disturbances.
I hope you can get this managed. You both need your sleep!