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She is in the moderate stage of Alzheimer's and still functions quite independently. I live with her and we have a split bedroom floor plan. After I go to sleep she gets up and wanders the house most of the night finally going to sleep for a couple hours or so in her recliner in the living room.

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Garden: I disagree about the walk as it's too akin to the middle of the night walk.
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Sherry: My mother was so out of it I could have been reading Mark Twain to her and not the Word of God. It just gave her a sense of calm.
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Or perhaps she's a Native American, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist -this is a diversified country with diversified religions.

Jeanne, your suggestion of a walk is simple, yet basic and rewarding. I think so often of the Nature Deficit Syndrome that's been identified as people spend more time indoors with electronic devices and lose contact with the basic rewards of being outside.

It's especially nice now as the heat has left and the autumn coolness is so refreshing.

You might even meet some neighbors working outside, walking their dogs (good therapy for young, middle and older folks to get acquainted with the local canine population). Perhaps a cup of one of the herbal teas that's sleep inducing when you return would be a nice way to end the day.
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Dear Llama lover, what if she is an atheist? or what if her spiritual path is Wicca or if she is Jewish. Scripture is not going to help, but rather hinder. TCO Biz, how about taking your mother for a late afternoon walk, get her tired, let her have a hot bath/shower and tuck her in? Also check for the UTI, a sure sign of this for my mother is wandering at night
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TCO, there are a variety of activities, some of which are free, both you and your mother could enjoy, depending on your interests.

Depending also on her cognitive level, you could try local senior citizen's centers, your community's recreational activities (which used to be called adult ed in my area), which sometimes include simple classes.

Libraries have various programs, including free concerts. They might be the most appealing to your mother. In our area, there are generally several free music programs throughout the summer, waning off in the fall, and sometimes being offered again around Christmas.

If she has any interest in crafts and can follow visual cues, Michael's and Jo-anns both have crafts classes.

Museums have rotating exhibits.

I don't know if being in public with a lot of strangers might be distracting though.
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Thanks for all the input you guys! It was really a nice feeling to have so many people respond, a feeling I haven't had in quite some time. And your right, as long as she is not in harms way I'm not going to fuss at her. I've been living with her for 19 months now and I do have A lot to be grateful for. She is very easy to take care of. The only thing I have to deal with is extreme isolation and loneliness because I moved up here from Florida and I have no one here no friends and no one in the family helps. there is only one sister-in-law and two nieces and I have seen them maybe once since I've been up here.
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I bought dad a deluxe foam mattress topper to go on top of the hospital bed mattress. It is unbelievably comfortable. We keep the head of the bed elevated to 45 degrees at all times due to his history of aspiration. I also got the most comfy pillows and quilt. Mom would never allow a recliner in her home, so his bed is really his only sleep spot. He broke his hip 3 years ago by dozing off in a chair and falling over. Now he is never left unattended for more than a moment. A night time caregiver, too.
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Scripture reading if she still understands God's name or his Hebrew name, Elohim.
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Is she safe alone at night? If she functions pretty independently in the day time, can she function as well at night? Then I don't see this as a problem.

If she keeps you awake at night, this is a problem.

If she is apt to take a few extra pills at night, or turn on burners, etc., this is a problem.

Could you provide a little more information?
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Sofas are warmer, definitely. The back of the sofa provides protection from the cold air in the wintertime. Unless someone sleeps with a massive large pillow next to their back, a bed just doesn't provide the wintertime warmth that a sofa does.

One option might be to switch her regular bed for a daybed. It's wider in the cushion area than a sofa, but it also has a back as a sofa does so it can protect against winter chills.

I slept on the sofa for several months when my mother stayed with me and I gave her my bed. I actually grew to like it. For an older person who might be vulnerable, a sofa provides a backing protection.
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I just found out that a mild antihistamine makes my mother sleep like a baby. We tried melatonin which made her groggy the next day and valerian which made her hallucinate. I put a doorbell on my mother's door so I will know if she gets up. BTW she only wanders when she has a UTI.
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Let her sleep there as long as she is safe. She is probably more comfortable in the chair. Also, people who have breathing issues often like to sit up where they can expand thier lungs and breathe more deeply.
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Unfortunately, there are no pemanent answers. What works will only work for a short while. The cost to the family caregivers is huge from time lost at work to severe health problems. The danger from fire or falling during the night is enormous, disrupting and possibly injuring the whole family. Please look into nighttime caregivers unless you are really averse to having someone in your house when you are trying to sleep. Then you need to consider a group home placement where they have an awake nighttime staff member, or a memory care(locked) facility.
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To clarify on the wandering....my Dad didn't wander OUT OF THE HOUSE during the night. Some do, and therefore there has to be special locks on the door. We had an alarm system installed, and when activated at bedtime, the alarm goes off if the door is opened. He just wandered around the house, but seemed to understand that if it were dark outside, he needed to stay inside.
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My father was like this with his dementia until he was bedridden just a couple weeks before he died! Even in memory care, he was up and down all night, and sleeping on the sofa. Medications didn't seem to help much either. He didn't wander while at home, but he was very upsetting to my Mom and her inability to get any sleep herself due to him roaming, turning on the TV loud, turning lights on and off and wandering in to ask her questions etc. He did things like get out ice cream to eat, and leave the container by his chair to melt, or put it back in the fridge side or up in a cupboard, creating messes. He tried cooking in middle of the night and burned up a couple pans at the end of his time at home, and created havoc by deciding he was looking for something and rearranging drawers or shelves all night long. Mom would get up to big messes sometimes! So to me, if this is the stage she is in, it may be time for a nighttime caretaker just to keep her OK, or time to start planning for placement in memory care. Also, yes....a low, low bed with padding next to it, in case of a fall while getting out of bed. Oftentimes, a fall, with a break and a need for hospital will lead to worsening dementia and/or death. This is exactly what did my Daddy in last month.
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My mother goes through a nightly ritual. She spreads blankets out on the sofa in the living room, then goes to her bedroom. In the middle of the night she gets up and goes to the sofa. She spends the rest of the night. She wakes up to eat some breakfast, then lies back down on the sofa, often sleeping through the morning.

I have asked her why she does this. She says she sleeps better on the sofa. It is rather inconvenient, since in essence she occupies the whole house in the morning by sleeping on the sofa.
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It's called a concave mattress.
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Hospital beds and/or bed rails can be helpful - or not. They can be a greater fall risk, because the person will hook her arm or leg in the rail and leverage/fall out, often breaking a limb in the process. Some nursing homes have moved to lower beds with mattresses that have slightly raised edges. They help the person feel secure (think cradle), it's harder for them to roll themselves over the lip, and if they do manage, they don't fall very far. Yes you will have to assist her in getting up out of the bed, but it might be a decent trade-off for you.
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Good morning to all the courageous caregivers on this site. I have the same situation with my mom she has dementia for 10 years. I got a hospital bed we are renting it we have had it for 2 months she slept on it once. I will not fight with her because I will be fighting with myself. She also has back problems and hasn't slept in a bed for many years. Someday she will not have a choice but to be in a bed, for now she has a brand new recliner. Her doctor will not give a sleeping pill because she is a fall risk. I go to bed and pray for God to protect her. Everything is locked up. I made a promise that I would care for my mom as long as possible but if she wanders of tries to leave we will have to find an alternative plan. I pray that you will have peace in your situation. Love to all.
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If she is awake at night, do not let her sleep during the daytime. Sundowners can be helped with a little Melatonin (bought OTC at drugstores), and she might feel more comfortable sleeping in the recliner. So what? Not everyone does well sleeping horizontally. Have you asked her if her back hurts when she lies down? Maybe she likes the room better than her bedroom. For whatever reason, her mind is taking her places you will not understand, and you have to allow her some latitude. Afterall, there is nothing "normal" about dementia!
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My ADW is well into the moderate stage of Alzheimer's often resisits to sleeping in her bed. Fixates on it not being her bed, She is a fall risk must have someone {me} have a hand on her gair belt. I have a problem with her climing over the bed rails of the hospital style bed. If someone has a solution it will be welcome. No she can not be left to wander the house

I sleep comfortably in a recliner along side the bed,
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If she's safe in the house and she's not waking you, can you not just let her go through this phase? Are there any risks or problems arising from it?
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