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I am new here. My mom moved in a few months ago. She is 88 and has dementia. She sleeps well at night for which I am grateful. She goes to bed around 8-8:30 and sometimes sleeps until almost noon. A few times this week, I peeked in around 10 - 11. She was in the bathroom so I figured I would start making her breakfast, but when I checked again, she had gone back to bed. Is this normal?

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People do tend to sleep more and more in the latter years of their life but I am of the opinion that it is better if possible to get up in the morning and then lie down again for a nap if needed.
-it allows for toileting or incontinence changes
-it is better for skin integrity to get out of bed and move,
-it allows them to eat and drink something which can help stave off dehydration, digestive issues and the frailty that can be the result of too few calories
-it keeps medication schedules consistent
-it may help with bedtime and overnight sleeplessness
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KKTheBean May 2021
Good morning. :0) I was so glad you replied add you did, regarding the question on elderly sleeping in. They were mainly things that hadn't occurred to me. Excellent points!! Thank you.
:0)
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I will be 88 and I must have ten solid hours of sleep and wake up naturally. If I do, I can handle just about anything during the day as I am very busy doing something constantly. When I worked, I got seven or eight hours sleep and had to fight constantly to stay awake and not be a complete zombie. I go to bed around l a.m. as I can't sleep before the and often wake up at 11:30 a.m. Leave us alone - sleep is healing and does not hurt anyone. And why get up? What do old people do? Not much of anything so let us sleep.
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Emmdee May 2021
Brilliant answer!

Why do people feel the need to impose their schedules on us oldies?
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Other than if her diaper needs to be changed(you say in your profile she's incontinent) so she won't get any sores, I would let her sleep. It's kind of like you never want to wake a sleeping baby. You can probably get a whole lot more done with her sleeping, so enjoy it while it lasts, because with dementia things can change on a dime. Wishing you the best, and please make sure that you're taking care of yourself, and taking time for yourself as well.
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PollyN May 2021
I didn’t say that in my profile so I am not sure if it may have been confused with someone else. She does most of her own toileting but does wear disposable underwear.
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My mother is 92 with dementia. I recently placed her in assisted living because after 4-5 years of her living with my husband and me, I could no longer be therapeutic with her. Anyway, she has always liked to sleep in late, and she continued to do so even as her bedtime became earlier (10 p.m.). I gave up on trying to get her going in the morning and allowed her to sleep in until 1 or 2 p.m. She could easily sleep in until 4 p.m. and still go to bed at 10. Her doctors, including her neurologist have expressed it is not a worry, so I don’t worry. At the Assisted Living facility, they bring her breakfast late morning and she may go back to sleep until 2-3 p.m. She misses out on activities, but she is adamant about sleeping late. She is taking an antidepressant and does not show other signs of depression. I think it is her way of coping with a life for which she feels little enthusiasm.
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As long as she’s sleeping through the night I don’t think it’s a problem. Our bodies tell us when we need sleep. Let her enjoy it.
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RedVanAnnie May 2021
seem right to me, too Sleeping may be what your mother most needs to do now.
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Since she sleeps well at night, I wouldn't worry too much. Many seniors take a nap after lunch and then sleep well at night. It seems your mom prefers her "naps" in the morning. As long as she is eating well, getting plenty of fluids, and some sunshine - she seems to be fine.
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My wife often sleeps until noon. She is put to bed nightly between 9:30 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. As long as I can see her chest moving, I am happy that she sleeps.

Late morning sleeping for her means "brain rest" for me!
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If you chose to sleep in,, would you want someone waking you up?

People with dementia do sleep alot and when you're older you sleep more anyway.

I would let her sleep in as long as it doesn't effect her sleeping at night.

You might ask her if she would like you to wake her up in the mornings or let her wake up when she wants.

Do you have something for her to do or is she waking up sooner to have more time during the day to stare at the walls?
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As long as she is sleeping at night, I suppose it would be ok to sleep during the day. Dementia must be a nightmare, and sleeping might just be an escape. My Mom slept alot too.
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Increased sleeping is normal in the decline with dementia.
My Husband would go to bed around 7 and would stay in bed until I got him up at 7AM. He was usually awake but if not I would turn the light on about 6:45 or so and that would more gently wake him than me telling him it was time to get up. This worked out great when he went on Hospice and the CNA would come about 7 so he was used to getting up then.
I would shower him, dress him and get breakfast and he would doze on and off until lunch, eat lunch then doze on and off until dinner.
the amount of time sleeping increased so that towards the last month of his life he was sleeping about 20 hours if not a bit more each day.
I would try to keep him as active as I could either a walk or a ride to one of his favorite places (Sam's or Costco for the free samples) until it became unsafe for me to get him into the car or take him for a walk.
Keeping her active might help.
Getting a set routine will also help. Helps greatly when you actually have an appointment and need to get going at a specific time.
If she is used to going to bed at 8 or 8:30 getting her up and ready for the day at 7:00- 7:30 (or whatever time works best for you). that would give her enough sleep and if she is tired she can cat nap later. But trying to keep her engaged, active is a good idea.
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