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My husband does the same. Sometimes he wears a parka and hiking boots to bed. I let him do it to avoid a fight. If he his hot, he will take some layers off during the night.
He sometimes does the same when we get out, then starts taking layers off. I just check that he is decent and not too bizarre, and take along a bag for the removed clothes. Sometimes we get strange looks, but I think most people understand.
It's the new normal at my house. Not worth stressing him and getting stressed myself.
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Reply to AnnaKat
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Check her temperature - if she is a little cold, help her put on something warmer and maybe add a blanket or 2 to the bed.

If she just seems to be "stuck in dressing mode", help her get dressed: lay out something appropriate for her to wear, keep the other clothes hidden away or behind a locked door, help her with her bedtime routine.
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Reply to Taarna
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Aging dementia patients’ deteriorating brains can lose the ability to maintain body temperature. Their normal temperature can decline two degrees or more below what is normal for you and me. Thus, they feel cold because they are indeed cold and need more warm clothing or covers. That fact, combined with cognitive decline can lead to unusual layering of clothing.
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Reply to Pflashgordon
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My husband would put on layers of clothing in daytime and nighttime. It had nothing to do with the cold or heat. We live in a tropical climate with whole house A/C and heat on auto adjusted to his needs. So I don't believe temperature is the problem in every case.

He'd put on 7+ layers of shirts, some upside down, some sort of sideways. Pants - same thing. Sometimes underwear went on over his head and he'd put his head through a leg hole. Sometimes two legs went through one leg of his shorts, immobilizing him. He'd cry because he couldn't figure out how to get out. He'd wear pajamas and various other items all together to bed at night. He was majorly confused about clothing in general, but he still remembered he needed to wear it. Mostly.

There is some other thing going on in the head of a person with dementia. It's about clothes, and I've never seen a name put to the condition. If it is a condition, that is.

I see no real problem with wife wearing all her clothes to bed at night as long as she is comfortable. If you don't like it, hide her clothes and you be the one who dresses and undresses her. That way you'll know she's always appropriate. Or an aide can come twice a day to undress and dress her. That's worked for some people I know.
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Reply to Fawnby
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McGuava Jun 18, 2025
Agree! When we're home, I don't say anything and just think it's kinda cute. If we have to go out, I just say "we're going out, let's get dressed."
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Being cold could mean a few things.
1) Maybe the house is too cool ->>>> turn down AC or up the heat; and close windows
2) Food - sometimes people get cold when they have not eaten a real meal in a while. Make sure she eats smaller and frequent meals. Give her tea or hot cocoa.
3) Medication - can it cause someone to be cold? Not sure, so research or ask your doctor.
4) Not moving enough. If she does not move during the day, her body may not be warmed up. Make sure she goes for walk or does some exercise, even if light.
5) if she has dementia, sometimes, people with dementia don't understand that they are putting on multilayers. Buy a warm zipper ups sweater or sweatershirt for her so that she not feel the need to wear a few.
6) Warm up the bed before she gets in. You can buy a microwaveable bed warmer and toss it in her bed before she gets in it, or a hot water bottle, or use an electric blanket to warm up the bed. Take out the warmer or the hot water bottle before she gets in. Turn off the electric blanket too and remove it. If you do this every night, there will be no need for layers of clothing, the bed will be warm and help her sleep.
7) Buy flannel pajamas - nightgowns and top/bottom pjs.
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Reply to WordsofWisdom
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gladiator812: Perhaps she is on blood thinners.
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Reply to Llamalover47
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She must be cold.
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Reply to lealonnie1
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Mom would get into bed with her shoes on in the middle of the night.

We just left these type of goofy things go.
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Reply to brandee
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My experience: older people are colder than the average adult. Also, it could be a need to "keep" things she wants. My daddy ripped his photo albums apart because he thought that the pictures would be safer in a tin container. : ( took me several emails and months to get those back together with relatives help! : )
If its not a hazard let her be unless you want to argue all the time.
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Reply to Ohwow323
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It is time for removal of items that are causing such problems, and for more supervision; if you are unable to manage this type of intensive caregiving please do consider that placement in in-facility care provides several shifts daily with several people on each shift to manage the caregiving.
This, finally, is where it goes. We are human beings with limitations.
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Reply to AlvaDeer
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Is your wife just really cold and doesn't know how to tell you that?
I live in NC and it stays hot here at least 6 months out of the year and my late husband(who had vascular dementia) towards the end of his life(the last year or so)would wear either sweat pants or his fleece pj pants along with a hoodie sweatshirt pulled tight around his head even when it was in the 90's.
And on top of that I usually had to cover him with 2 blankets. So your wife's behavior is not uncommon. If she's happy and comfortable that's all that matters.
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Reply to funkygrandma59
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Gladiator, hi, you don't say much, I'm wondering your and your wife's age? Has your wife been diagnosed with dementia.

I was caregiveing a couple, the couple was just getting part time help, one morning, after a night alone, I got there and the wife had like on , 7 or 8 pairs of socks on each foot. I called the office I worked for and told them, that she needs more care than she is getting, because I suspect her dementia was declining. That could of been very dangerous for her, if she has swelling and cut her circulation off.
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Reply to Drivingdaisy
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You don't ask a question and you don't give us any details at all for context. More info would be helpful. Are you trying to find out what's causing this behavior? Are you trying to figure out how to stop this behavior?
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Reply to Geaton777
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