It take care of my mom and we go to bed around 9 or 10 at night. She used to wake up on her own around 10. Now she sleeps until around 12. I woke her up yesterday at 10 and all day she just wasn’t herself. People are saying to wake her up.
What do I do? Especially lately there will be times when she is wide awake and won’t sleep for like 2 days. Any suggestions would help.
If she has dementia, her brain is exhausted by every little bit of information it has to process during the day.
Talk to her doctor about medication to help get her onto a consistent sleep routine.
Consistent routine including sleep times will help her. Any changes in routine can make the person anxious or even agitated.
Hang a whiteboard or a sign on which you can write down a daily schedule, including the times and what activity will be done then. It could help her to follow a schedule and anticipate what will come next. And sticking to it will help get her sleeping regularly, even if she needs more sleep.
Mom has worked hard all of her life. Let her sleep.
As long as there are a certain number of hours between meds, then it shouldn't matter when they are taken.
Some medication is recommended to be given at certain times because of side effects which cause a person to do things that could be awkward at the wrong time, such as needing the bathroom, or becoming sleepy. That's no longer an issue, since your mum's sleep pattern has changed so drastically.
Thyroid medication works best if taken an hour before breaking fast, for instance, so it's taken as soon as a person wakes up.
However, if your mum is now sleeping most of the time, keeping her at optimal health is no longer possible. It's time for acceptance. Perfection is not to be had.
If it were my mum, I would try waking her in the morning to take her tablets, then let her fall back to sleep. If that's not possible, then I would leave her be and accept the situation.
....however, you also describe a person who potentially has a bipolar disorder.
Talk to her doctor and see what he says. Is it possible to install cameras to see what happens at night while you are sleeping?
My Mom also slept a lot during the day. She couldn't hear well, so I know it wasn't sounds that was keeping her awake at night. It turns out that the dementia was waking her up. Waking her up from her sleep invoked aggressive responses from her. When we had caregivers for her (because she was a fall risk), they recorded the number of times she would get up from her bed and go to the bathroom (generally 20-30 times a night). She only remembered waking at the most 2 times, however, generally felt lackluster during the day. So I changed it up and took her in the car with me to do errands. She slept really well in the car which improved her moods and her feelings, and the ability to function rationally. The only issue was me...there were just so many errands I could do. I used to tell the caregivers, my Mom sleep walks, sleep talks and sleep eats.
It is one of the declines that Hospice will use to indicate that a person can remain on Hospice.
My Husband went from sleeping a "normal" 8 to 10 hours to sleeping 14 to 16 hours then eventually the last year of his life a typical day was sleeping 20 hours the last month or so it was typical for him to sleep 22 + hours waking briefly for a bed bath, brief change or to eat.
If your mom is not on Hospice you might want to look in to getting her evaluated for Hospice. You will get help, equipment and supplies delivered. A Nurse each week and a CNA about 2 times a week.
At home I would sit on the edge of his bed and talk to him and he said he was OK enough and just tired but the lengthy sleeping was one of the end of life signs.
For anyone in this situation just talk to them throughout the day and if not in hospice or supportive care then reach out to their doctor.
Waking gently to check on them is what I did.
Support and strength to all of you. Be as well as you can be yourself.
enough water
check medications of too strong
maybe doctor review needed
is anyone spending enough time with her
can you put on a tv or radio
This pattern of sleeping most of the day is normal.
People who don't understand the illness will usually give poor advice.
All I can say is just make sure that she gets her meals and daily activities of living when she is awake and feeling up to it. Don't try to force anything if she doesn't feel up to it. If she eats very little, offer smaller meals during her wake time.
Folks with dementia tend to sleep more and more as their dementia progresses, so ignore the folks that are telling you to wake her up. They haven't a clue as to what they're talking about.
Your mother has earned the right to sleep whenever she wants and for as long as she wants.
Waking her up is not going to fix her situation.
What is your mother's physical condition and when was the last time you saw the doctor with her?
I would discuss this with the doctor, but if you stay and read on Forum you will also understand that as aging and dementia increase it becomes more and more a matter of less food intake and more (MUCH more) sleeping.
Exercise is crucial to keeping bones strong, balance better, appetite good, tendons stretches, and skin free of pressure sores. So when awake she must be active as she is able to be. But otherwise, there is little reason for her not to be at rest now, until she passes.