Mom starts to walk and then she says, my feet won’t move. Do you have any suggestions?

My father with vascular dementia had something similar where he sometimes couldn't figure out how to get into the car. He would just stand by the open door and look around. I would open the back door and put my foot into the car and then Dad would mimic me. Maybe you could try standing in front of her and saying something like "just step out with your foot..."

My dad with vascular dementia has had this problem for months now. This week he told me his brain has forgotten how to walk. I hate this disease!

My first though is Parkinson's, it's called freezing. Of course she needs to bring this to the attention of her doctor.

I'd have her checked by her doctor to see if she has some medical problem with her nerves, spine, muscles, etc., but, it could be what TNtechie said as well. My LO lost the ability to walk as a result of her Vascular Dementia too. Her legs just wouldn't work. She went to a wheelchair pretty quickly. You can explore physical therapy, but, that didn't help my LO. She was actually having strokes. The MRI later showed it. So, you can ask for tests and see if they can figure it out.

This sounds similar to an event my mother had when she was still living on her own. She had a bag of groceries and she described this symptom. She then fell. Fortunately people on the street helped her. Shortly after she was diagnosed with having suffered an ischemic stroke although that was later in time.

My used to say the same exact thing! The physical therapist swore she had Parkinson’s, the Dr. swore she didn’t. Two specialists & several months later she was diagnosed with severe back issues affecting the nerves running to her legs, but also Lewey Body & vascular dementia. Not saying your mom has this, just what was happening with my mom.

My great auntie had that problem. She would say that exact same thing. I assumed it meant the ‘signal’ from her brain to her legs wasn’t working any longer. It did not get better.
PS. She did not have dementia or any health problems at all. Just age (88yo).

Hi Miki. My Mom has had this problem for about a year now. She has vascular dementia and some Parkinsonian symptoms. Be careful of falls as that is now happening with my Mom. Also freezes when getting in the car and sometimes in the bed. She races sometimes too with uncontrollable walk that has led to a fall as well. I’m not sure if this is what’s happening with your Mom. Has she had other symptoms? I put two stair lifts in my home as the freezing was happening on the stairs. My Mom uses a walker all the time now but still needs constant assistance as her last two falls were while using the walker. I will soon move to a gait belt since the signal interruption from brain to legs is getting worse and fast. When she freezes I tell her to pick up her foot and move it forward. Eventually it works. The brain has to kind of reset. Scary and very sad to watch. Best of luck with your Mom.

Another poster recently had a situation where her LO could not stand. Turned out to be a UTI. So do get that checked. It’s easy to rule out.
Does your mom use a cane or walker? You might want to also have a PT evaluate her. Therapy might help.