Hallucinating is a common symptom in some kinds of dementia. Often the objects seen are people, especially children. The general advice is not to argue about whether what she sees is real. To her they are very real! You cannot reason her out of this belief.
If what she sees is not upsetting to her, just go along with it. One member of my local caregiving group had a husband who always saw children. He would ask her if she was going to set places for them at the table. She told him something like, "Oh, their parents are coming for them soon. I gave them a little snack earlier but we don't want to spoil their dinners." He was OK with that. If your mother is seeing a bad guy she thinks is trying to harm her, or a child who is lost and needs help, then you have to be very creative to not argue with her but to reassure her she is safe, the child is safe, etc.
Hallucinations are hard to treat. I know there is a drug in test stage now to address hallucinations in Parkinson's and Lewy Body Dementia. But I'm not aware of anything currently available. If mother's hallucinations are disturbing to her and she is agitated or anxious in general, treating the anxiety may help.
Hallucinations can also occur with a uti. If this behavior is new it would be worthwhile to have her tested for that. My aunt did not have dementia but she did see young children in her house when she had a uti.
My father had a very vivid hallucination when he first went to a rehab. He was convinced that he was in my old college town about an hour away from where he actually was. More that that, he thought the rehab was my sorority and the nurses my sorority sisters. Even more - he thought they were all scantily clad in lingerie! A wishful thinking hallucination?!! Even so - he called me very upset and wanted me to come get him.
The whole thing scared the hell out of me as nothing like this had ever happened before and I thought he was loosing his mind.
After he was caught trying to escape by climbing out a window they tested for a UTI. Yep, positive. At the time I hadn't a clue what an UTI can do to the mind of an elderly person. It's truely terrifying.
Long after my father was released and cured of the UTI my father could recall this hallucination and while he knew it was not real - he still said it seemed so real to him he still found it difficult to believe it never happened. If this is new behavior for your mother, get her tested for an UTI as soon as possible.
My mother started seeing things. Once my husband snuck into her room behind where I was standing and stole something out of her dresser. It was so real to her and she obsessed about it for weeks. I took her to her neurologist, she was tested for a UTI and was clear, and the neuro dr, after speaking with her and mom insisting it was real, put her on seroquel. What an amazing drug. I have my mom back, not some nasty, accusing, ugly woman. All I can say is it worked for her.
As my mom's doc said "just go with the flow". It is better to do this than to say no one is there, etc. It will only confuse her and not trust me. So I went with the flow. I would ask her questions about that person, etc. and she would elaborate. We created quite a conversation this way and she was pleased. We learned to laugh about quite a lot and it was refreshing versus fretting over every little detail.
One thing I did was buy the book "The Story of A Lifetime" which chronicled her life. It was almost 400 pages but together we did it. I asked the question and I wrote her answers. It was the best thing I ever did for her. I learned a lot about my mom and I treasure this book more than anything. It was a journey we took together. It's well worth the price!
How you deal with it will depend on her actions or reactions. Are these people frightening to her or a comfort? Let's do the easy one first. If she is comforted by these imaginary people then go with it, talk to her about them. Are they family members? If so you might get some great family history. Are they long time friends? Many, at the end of life will "see" family members. And who are we to say that what they are seeing is imaginary or not. Just because you can't see something does not mean it does not exist. Isn't that what Faith is all about? (Typically we can not see germs but we know they exist..maybe they just have not yet developed a tool to enable us to see what we just brush off as a hallucination) Now the tough one. Are these imaginary people frightening to her? If so again talk about it try to reassure her that she is safe and no harm will come to her. Do not tell her that they do not exist. First you will never win an argument with a person with Dementia and if she does not have dementia it is like trying to convince a 2 year old that there is no monster in the closet. Still not gonna win! You can talk to her doctor and see if there are medications that may help to relieve some of the anxiety.
My mom has been talking to imaginary people for some time now, off and on. About a month ago I heard her talking to people in her room. I opened the door and told her that it was past her bedtime and her friends needed to go home. Mom motioned to the "friends," walked to the front door, opened it and said, "you need to go home now but you can visit another time." She closed the door and I didn't hear anymore "talking" for a few weeks.
Last week I heard her talking, in the hall, where there is a full length mirror. She was asking how the kids were to this person who looked just like her. It didn't seem to bother her so I walked away.
That night I was talking to my 3 year old grand-daughter about Mom and she said, "Don't worry, Old Mam is just playing Mirror, Mirror on the wall."
I agree with everything here. There is also a book called Final Gifts by a couple of hospice nurses that says the same thing--how people nearing the end of their lives often see people the rest of us can't see, and how this can be a very positive and spiritual experience. I found the book very comforting!
Not long ago, my mom woke me up at 2:00 a.m. and wanted me to make all those children in her house go home. She said that someone had dropped these kids off for her to babysit last month and the parents just never came back. I told her that I would call the parents and that she should go back to bed and I will care for the kids until the mom gets there to get them. She said, "What about those two that are asleep in my bed?" I almost had to laugh! I told her I thought they had already gotten up to get ready to go home. We went in the bedroom to make sure and she agreed that they were gone and went right to bed! As with all the others who comment on this site, I, too, have found that trying to convince them that they are not seeing what they "know" they are seeing is a waste of time. Only makes matters worse. Sometimes, we just have to laugh and go on down the road..........................
Gwens1stchild, I know exactly what you're going through. My father began having hallucinations when he got his first UTI back in late 2014, and as the infection recurs he continues to have them. He sees people coming in at night through a hole in the wall behind a picture. He thinks they're trying to steal his musical instruments (he was a professional musician). Usually he'll call out, "GET OUT OF HERE! PUT THAT DOWN" and that's when I know I need to go to him. Telling him that it's his imagination would be devastating, furthermore he wouldn't believe it. Very often I'm at a loss as what to do. I've told him that I've spoken to the Police and the FBI and that the police patrols this street all night to make sure no one breaks in. A few times he's ordered me to call the police that minute - I go out of the room for a few minutes and then come back in telling him I've spoken to the police and that they knew about it and would come by our street and patrol all night. The other day he asked, "Why can't they come in here so I can talk to them?" I fished in my head and said, "They can't come investigate inside here unless they have a warrant." Happily, he believed this and went back to sleep. So, I have to constantly improvise when these things happen. I'm just as in the dark as you are, nothing prepares us for these things. Big hug and hang in there.
If what she sees is not upsetting to her, just go along with it. One member of my local caregiving group had a husband who always saw children. He would ask her if she was going to set places for them at the table. She told him something like, "Oh, their parents are coming for them soon. I gave them a little snack earlier but we don't want to spoil their dinners." He was OK with that. If your mother is seeing a bad guy she thinks is trying to harm her, or a child who is lost and needs help, then you have to be very creative to not argue with her but to reassure her she is safe, the child is safe, etc.
Hallucinations are hard to treat. I know there is a drug in test stage now to address hallucinations in Parkinson's and Lewy Body Dementia. But I'm not aware of anything currently available. If mother's hallucinations are disturbing to her and she is agitated or anxious in general, treating the anxiety may help.
Hallucinations can also occur with a uti. If this behavior is new it would be worthwhile to have her tested for that. My aunt did not have dementia but she did see young children in her house when she had a uti.
The whole thing scared the hell out of me as nothing like this had ever happened before and I thought he was loosing his mind.
After he was caught trying to escape by climbing out a window they tested for a UTI. Yep, positive. At the time I hadn't a clue what an UTI can do to the mind of an elderly person. It's truely terrifying.
Long after my father was released and cured of the UTI my father could recall this hallucination and while he knew it was not real - he still said it seemed so real to him he still found it difficult to believe it never happened. If this is new behavior for your mother, get her tested for an UTI as soon as possible.
Are these people frightening to her or a comfort?
Let's do the easy one first.
If she is comforted by these imaginary people then go with it, talk to her about them. Are they family members? If so you might get some great family history. Are they long time friends?
Many, at the end of life will "see" family members. And who are we to say that what they are seeing is imaginary or not. Just because you can't see something does not mean it does not exist. Isn't that what Faith is all about? (Typically we can not see germs but we know they exist..maybe they just have not yet developed a tool to enable us to see what we just brush off as a hallucination)
Now the tough one.
Are these imaginary people frightening to her? If so again talk about it try to reassure her that she is safe and no harm will come to her. Do not tell her that they do not exist. First you will never win an argument with a person with Dementia and if she does not have dementia it is like trying to convince a 2 year old that there is no monster in the closet. Still not gonna win!
You can talk to her doctor and see if there are medications that may help to relieve some of the anxiety.
My mom has been talking to imaginary people for some time now, off and on. About a month ago I heard her talking to people in her room. I opened the door and told her that it was past her bedtime and her friends needed to go home. Mom motioned to the "friends," walked to the front door, opened it and said, "you need to go home now but you can visit another time." She closed the door and I didn't hear anymore "talking" for a few weeks.
Last week I heard her talking, in the hall, where there is a full length mirror. She was asking how the kids were to this person who looked just like her. It didn't seem to bother her so I walked away.
That night I was talking to my 3 year old grand-daughter about Mom and she said, "Don't worry, Old Mam is just playing Mirror, Mirror on the wall."
To my grand-daughter I am Mam, Mom is Old Mam.
Grandchildren can put things in perspective!
See All Answers