To not take my mum to the GP? (Mild cognitive impairment)

Hi if there are genuine concerns then she needs to be assessed in order to get access to medication that might significantly slow her decline.
There is not much out there to treat later stages but there are drugs to help at early stage to slow progression. How will you or she feel if she loses the opportunity to be treated by these drugs by avoiding seeing a doctor until it is too late? Cholinesterase inhibitors are the primary drugs - but you need a diagnosis.
It may also be the case that she would benefit from antidepressants
Assessment need not be awful. My father was assessed in his own home by a doctor- who kept it a reasonably light conversation and did not push too hard if my did not want to count backwards in 3s etc.
If she still has capacity then you need to do power of attorneys now. You cannot do it after mental incapacity has been diagnosed.
You could minimize the stress of doing the POA by saying you were doing one for yourself.

@sipandcleanjust seen your further comments. You initially said there are no meds. I have worked as a dementia nurse for many years. For some people you can’t see how they’re helping (they may slow down progression but it’s hard to measure(m) but others they make a huge difference. Rivastigmine also really helps with symptoms of Parkinson’s dementia/ lewt body dementia.

Donepezil, rivastigmine or galantamine if you want to google

With respect you haven't got a great deal of knowledge of the issue. Cognitive change could be a sign of other health or neuro problems too.

I would present this to your mum as a 'baseline check' so she can take action if need be.

Might be an idea to have bloods (e.g. cholesterol), a hearing check too.

There are meds that aim to slow down the progression of dementia. Management plans don't revert the patient to their 40 year old self, that's not realistic but please encourage your mum to speak to the GP. Also it will help if she keeps herself as mentally and physically active as possible.

Your dr friend is talking utter rubbish. If your dr friend even exists as a couple of posts ago you didn't even know drugs existed.

They always give ‘meds’. Sadly a dr friend told me they are placebos.

My MIL has rapidly deteriorated since she fell and broke her hip last October. She has been in and out of hospital with health issues since then as she is refusing to eat and drink most of the time. She has carers four times a day and is partially bed bound. We have noticed a real decline in her cognitive ability. She no longer remembers my name. We have asked her GP to have the memory clinic do an assessment after the hospital did the test and she scored 11 where 10 and below indicates medium to severe cognitive deficits. We are still waiting and it has been quite over a month since she has been home. We are stuck in limbo as she officially can still make decisions regarding her health care. She recently told social services that she doesn’t need care and gets herself out of bed every day and has a shower. She hasn’t been upstairs since last October.

It is devastating that we feel it is such a battle to get the GP to act in her best interests and get the test done. We do have POA for financial but now will struggle to get it medically because of the situation we are in.

She has anxiety, worked in a stressful field, and lost her (abusive) husband only two years ago. No wonder she has some cognitive difficulties. She sounds like she needs help with her anxiety and quite likely ongoing therapy and support fo the ongoing aftereffects of her marriage. Also a review of any medications or overthecounter drugs she may be on, and some vitamin B12 and iron pills.

Just not sleeping well or being dehydrated can make someone vulnerable to memory and cognition problems.

I'm 61 and my memory is terrible. I also am poor with organisational stuff, even though 15 years ago i was a valued secretary. I do have insomnia though. My MIL has mixed dementia and takes memantine which is a drug that may help symptoms of dementia and slow decline so there may be a value in a diagnosis if you continue to worry.

I suspect your mum isn't sleeping well and may be depressed. As friends and family retire she may feel she's missing out on that side of life, even if it wasn't something she would have done anyway, for example going on a cruise with her husband. Maybe give her some one to one time just having fun so doesn't feel guilty with you sorting things out?

My relative and a friend's mum are both on meds that they have been told will slow the progress of their disease. I don't know the name sorry, and maybe they misunderstood.

Take her to the GP. Talk about memory not dementia. (Speak to GP privately before appointment explaining your concerns) If GP thinks there's an issue they will refer to memory clinic.
We are going through this with my mum and the feedback we've had is the earlier they get checked out the better.

What meds are these? To my knowledge there aren't any.

I thought my parent had MCI and in fact it is dementia - just for some reason (possibly cognitive reserve) their cognitive skills are pretty good (it was the brain scan that was the giveaway). They are now taking medication which is helping plus has had some brilliant local support.

My mum was diagnosed with early alzheimers. I worried it was more anxiety and trauma related to significant bereavement but the diagnosis was made and medication given. The memory clinic assessed tgat the anxiety was caused by the memory impairment, nit vice versa.

The medication for her resulted in a significant change. It reduced the anxiety wnd paranoid thoughts and she began to get more pleasure back in her life and be calmer which meant able to do more tasks.

I dont regret the diagnosis and it came at the right time. The medication if Alzheimers may not work for all but was transforming for her and she lived ten years and died of non-dementia illness whilst still having mental capacity.

Sounds like a form of PTSD

The medications that are typically provided for Alzheimer’s don’t slow the disease. They make the remaining brain signalling work better. I don’t think starting sooner slows the disease. It puts the effects of the disease off for longer.

I do appreciate everyone can have different experiences with medication, my DF had a dementia diagnosis and was put on medication to slow it down. The medication had to be taken before bed, my DF experienced flashing lights which he described as a ‘disco’ and it stopped him sleeping. He therefore came off the medication. My DM was on the medication for at least 12 years, once she had been given the diagnosis and put on the tablets there were no follow up appointments at all, she just had them on repeat. Her dementia did progress but was much slower than my Dads. Of course no one can say if that was down to the medication or not

From someone who had a parent with dementia, I would get her assessed. Or at least get the ball rolling. It can take SO long to get things into place.

I don’t think this new disease modifying drug is available on NHS as not approved by NICE.

I’d suggest chatting with her and seeing if she’d be willing to have blood tests just in case she’s got thyroid problems or things that are easily treatable, but cause memory issues and perhaps make her feel not as good as she could.

Perhaps a gentle chat about anxiety and if there is anything that she would like to do or try.

POA health and finance is a must do.

One thing to consider is writing confidentially to her GP. Although the GP can’t talk to you about your mum’s health (without her permission or a POA), your concerns will get logged and the GP can be on the lookout if she’s there for other issues.