She is 98 and is drinking 3 glasses of water and 2 cups of coffee in a 2 hour span and not having to go to bathroom. She also has been seeing people that are not there.
My mom typically starts getting visitors when she hasn't been drinking enough water and it's always the struggle! I was going to say if it were my mom I would make sure she had fresh incontinence underwear on and then be very happy but if nothing is coming out after all those fluids I think a call to the doctors office is in order. The fluids must be accumulating somewhere and that's not good and if there is something blocking up the waste system you want to get that addressed asap.
In the meantime is she walking, getting plenty of exercise to help get the body systems working and the fluids moving? Sometimes that helps, though I'm thinking more about bowels but still. Any pain anywhere? Doctors nurse or whoever collects the info will ask these questions so be prepared with answers, how long has this been going on, was it a sudden change, any temp, shortness of breath, coughing?
No excersice just to bathroom and back to chair. Yes I agree about checking with Dr. No problem with urinating or bowels. Her BP is really good 124/64 this AM. No meds causing hallucinations.
Yes it is a lot she says her mouth is dry. She does snore while sleeping. No doesn't drink that amount all day and yes she finally did urinate after about 4 hours. I am 67 and my bladder is not that good!!
Is she diagnosed? Does she have a possible Lewy's? The hallucinations about people can be fascinating and exceptionally real. My bro sees entire pool parties out his window and can tell you what each person is wearing and what they look like. He sees for instance an immigrant mother huddled into the corner protecting her child. Often when you see a shadow of what he is seeing it makes sense what his mind made it into. The glasses of water is more worrisome to me and I would like a physical done here as regards to that, at least running it past the doc. Elders have little incentive to drink often, and that is why they run into the bug-bear of dehydration so often, especially in hot climes. But the drinking too much can have to do with diabetes. You should call your doc with that one, see if he or she wants to run any bloodwork. The not having to go to the bathroom makes not a lot of sense, as usually "polydipsea" and "polyurea" go together. If she is actually absorbing and not eliminating the water you will want to be sure you are not seeing peripheral edema in feet, swelling of abdomen, and no seeing any signs of fluid in lungs such as shortness of breath at rest, or when laying flat. Good luck. When in doubt, running something past a great doc office is best.
Nicki989, as for seeing people who are not there, have your Mom make an appointment with her primary doctor to be tested for an Urinary Tract Infection. Such an infection in elders can mimic dementia, and the elder can also start seeing things that are not there.
My Dad had a UTI and I knew when I heard he was seeing ants on the wall and in his food. The ants started to disappear when the antibiotics started to kick in.
Who knows, maybe that is why your Mom is drinking so much water.
In the meantime is she walking, getting plenty of exercise to help get the body systems working and the fluids moving? Sometimes that helps, though I'm thinking more about bowels but still. Any pain anywhere? Doctors nurse or whoever collects the info will ask these questions so be prepared with answers, how long has this been going on, was it a sudden change, any temp, shortness of breath, coughing?
The glasses of water is more worrisome to me and I would like a physical done here as regards to that, at least running it past the doc. Elders have little incentive to drink often, and that is why they run into the bug-bear of dehydration so often, especially in hot climes. But the drinking too much can have to do with diabetes. You should call your doc with that one, see if he or she wants to run any bloodwork.
The not having to go to the bathroom makes not a lot of sense, as usually "polydipsea" and "polyurea" go together. If she is actually absorbing and not eliminating the water you will want to be sure you are not seeing peripheral edema in feet, swelling of abdomen, and no seeing any signs of fluid in lungs such as shortness of breath at rest, or when laying flat.
Good luck. When in doubt, running something past a great doc office is best.
My Dad had a UTI and I knew when I heard he was seeing ants on the wall and in his food. The ants started to disappear when the antibiotics started to kick in.
Who knows, maybe that is why your Mom is drinking so much water.