My husband is in the advance stage of Parkinson disease and dementia. Parkinson is a horrific disease and everyone does not have the same experiences. His Parkinson moving disorder neurologist prescribed a medication called Nupazid. It really helped him. When my husband was sun downing, I was told to turn on the lights and go into his world as if everything he is seeing when hallucinating and illuminating, is what you're seeing it too.
As mentioned, in the other message, there are a lot of good information on Parkinson disease and Sun downing.
I used to try to plan something stress-free for my dad during those hours...like sitting on the patio as the sun goes down and I would just chat away...tossing a soft ball between our outdoor chairs if that worked, or taking his music outside. I only said simple things to him like "Great music, right Dad?" or "Beautiful evening, right Dad?" or I would plan a treat, like ice cream. His sundowning was either confusion, seeing things, or obsessively shouting "Five!" It takes a lot of love and patience but it makes it much easier for them....sometimes he was suspicious of things he would see and I would make up names for what he was seeing..."oh, that's just that neighbor; he's a great guy...oh, yes, I see that but it isn't anything important, I'll keep my eye on it". Things like that. Hope this helps.
What exactly is he doing? Having hallucinations? Turn on lots of lights as hallucinations may be worse in low light or the dark. There is a medication approved for hallucinations only in Parkinson's patients. Some hallucinations may be caused by certain other meds. Usually PD patients will see small sized animals or people. I know of someone who saw bubbles on a dark background. He scoured the Internet and found two other people with the exact same hallucination. Turns out to have been a side effect of one specific med they were taking for Parkinson's. If his Sundowning is something else please explain more so we can maybe help with other ideas. Check out the Las Vegas Cleveland Clinic online free webinars. Today's topic was psychosis (hallucinations and delusions) in patients with dementia. The doctor was specifically talking about Alzheimers, Vascular Dementia, FTD, (FrontoTemporalDementia) and Lewy Body Dementia (which is basically part of Parkinson's). You can find their recorded sessions sessions at cclunchlearn.com. Today's session should be available tomorrow. The sessions are Wednesdays at noon Pacific Time
As mentioned, in the other message, there are a lot of good information on Parkinson disease and Sun downing.
Take Care!
Some hallucinations may be caused by certain other meds. Usually PD patients will see small sized animals or people. I know of someone who saw bubbles on a dark background. He scoured the Internet and found two other people with the exact same hallucination. Turns out to have been a side effect of one specific med they were taking for Parkinson's. If his Sundowning is something else please explain more so we can maybe help with other ideas. Check out the Las Vegas Cleveland Clinic online free webinars. Today's topic was psychosis (hallucinations and delusions) in patients with dementia. The doctor was specifically talking about Alzheimers, Vascular Dementia, FTD, (FrontoTemporalDementia) and Lewy Body Dementia (which is basically part of Parkinson's). You can find their recorded sessions sessions at cclunchlearn.com. Today's session should be available tomorrow. The sessions are Wednesdays at noon Pacific Time