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He has been on namenda and aricept for 20 years. A palliative care doc advised me to wean him off of these two. Famimly doc says ok, but his condition will deteriorate a lot faster. He is functioning, but ADLs are slipping. He can’t read, can’t drive, won’t shower, wears dirty clothes, won’t leave the house.


Should he come off these drugs or not? Now it seems like a moral dilemma.

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I'm sorry for his worsening symptoms and having to now ponder whether the meds are doing much or anything. I did some researching online and could not really find anything that definitively said those meds work well beyond 5 years. I don't know about the weaning off protocol -- his doc should be consulted for that. Because of his alcoholism, has he ever been checked for Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome? Alcohol blocks the absorption of an essential vitamin, creating a deficiency which causes dementia-like symptoms. If caught early, it can be treated but if not caught early it is permanent... Maybe this is what he had all along? It's astonishing that he survived 20 years with ALZ, even being on meds. May you receive peace as you make decisions in his best interests.
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I'm sure those medications do not mix well with alcohol, thus the reason dh should be weaned off of them. If your husband wants to speed up his demise with booze, that's fine because what's the point in lingering on for another miserable 10 years or whatever, where you'll have to place him and spend the family nest egg to do so. Follow the doctors advice and let dh choose his own way out. If I'm diagnosed with dementia, I'll swallow a bunch of pain pills with a big glass of whiskey and save myself and my family the heartache and expense of the Long Goodbye.

My condolences on your situation.
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ElizabethAR37 Mar 10, 2025
Yup, I'd probably do the same--IF I could get strong pills and enough of them. That can be a real issue these days now that the DEA seems to have taken over medical practice in many states.
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It's my understanding that neither of those drugs do anything much to help with dementia, other than perhaps the Aricept which if it helps at all only slows the progression and that is only for about 6 months to a year, so if his doctor wants him weaned off of these useless(at this point)medications I would just follow the recommended weaning off process.
Your husband is dying because of this horrific disease, so why would you want to prolong the inevitable anyway?
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swmckeown76 Mar 11, 2025
Some people wouldn't want to prolong life in this situation, while others wouldn't. It's what *he* wants if he can still articulate his wishes, or what he said when he was more coherent. It's not for anyone else to decide that someone else's life is no longer worth living. Frankly, I'd be appalled if *anyone* considered me of having a life no longer worth living. I'd consider it both ageist and ableist.
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Brandee again

You could also take him off one of them, see how it goes, then take him off of the other one. That would be the conservative approach.

Perhaps talk to a pharmacist and see which one the pharmacist would discontinue first.
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Geaton777 Mar 9, 2025
Telling someone to stop taking their prescription meds is NOT the job of the pharmacist but of the prescribing doctor ONLY.
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Unfortunately, there is no cure for Dementia. Some of these medications don't work for everyone. My dad was suicidal on Aricept. You may have to place your husband in a memory care facility. Your husband may become very hostile.
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Georgebmay: If he continues to consume alcohol, those medications may be of nil value.
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Georgebmay Mar 13, 2025
He has been sober for fifteen years
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What are the reasons given to withdraw his medication.
That will be helpful.
Really, in general, and in terms of advice, you should consult legal experts (Attorneys), Medical experts (docs) and financial experts (financial concerns) for questions in those fields.
You are new here. You won't find doctors, attorneys and financial experts on this forum, just a bunch of caregivers. So do know that your discussions with your doctors about their reasons to give or withdraw medications will be crucial. Also not easy.
There is really no cure here.
You are looking to hope to stop progression being rapid and you are looking to relieve symptoms.
Again, Welcome to the Forum.
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It is my understanding that the studies on those drugs where performed on those with early dementia/alzhemers and it is my understanding that there are not studies on these drugs for mid and late dementia/alzheimers. It is unknown if the drugs do much for mid to late dementia/alzheimers.

Mom was on those drugs for about 16 years. I ended up taking her off of the drugs when she got chronic UTI's. One of the side effects was urinary issues on one of them. The UTI's stopped when taking her off. We saw no change after we took her off of the drugs and she lived another 4 years after that.

You could always try taking him off (I'd do a taper) and evaluate and put him back on the drugs if you think you need to.
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If I understand correctly, your husband stopped drinking 15 years ago and no longer consumes any alcohol. He began taking both medications while he was still drinking. His alcoholism may have contributed to his developing dementia at age 65, but I don't see how it would be a factor in your current decision on whether or not to discontinue the medications. I would suggest speaking to a neurologist that specializes in dementia to help reconcile the different opinions of the palliative and primary doctor.

Our family chose to continue dementia meds (rivastigmine) even when Mom was on hospice in order to prevent cognitive decline, and in her case we feel it was the right decision.
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These drugs will help sharpen his memory and abilities until they do not work anymore. When they do not work anymore, then wean him off. Seems he still needs these medications.
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