Should I be concerned about this?

[rootsandwings89]

My my has become quite clumsy and forgetful in the last few years.

Today she asked me if I remember her picking me and my sisters up from school and taking us swimming by the beach. She said we did it all the time, sometimes I would bring a friend and sometimes my sister would.

This never happened, I asked my sister and she said the same thing. My mum was quite abusive and worked a lot when we were younger. She never even picked us up from school, let alone take us swimming by the beach. It's something she has completely fabricated but she spoke of it like it was a well known memory,

My maternal grandmother had Alzheimer's and so we are all quite wary of looking out for signs.

Would you be concerned by this? Does it sounds like early signs?

To clarify, my mum is 62 and recently retired

That's so young to be so confused. (I'm the same age). I would be concerned but I don't know how you could approach it with her.

I'd be concerned - it's not normal to have these false memories. My mother had dementia and in the early stages she'd suddenly start talking about her friend's sex lives, eg " my friend Wendy would pick up men from the naval base and have sex with them in shop doorways" or on the golf links , you name it. It was always about sex and probably fictional.

.Maybe their brains come up with things that are wishful thinking ? I don't know. Something to keep your eyes on anyway.

Did she perhaps go swimming with her sisters and mother?

My mother is living with dementia and in the early days would often repeat memories from her own childhood. (Put putting it across as us (her children) in place of her sisters)

My dad has dementia. One of the things he does is effectively take two different events and put them together if that makes sense. Eg. 'Oh i went to the shop and this happened'... 2 events that were real but happened at different times. Or similar to @scoopoftheday said - reliving an event, but with different people. I know your mum is only young , but if you have any concerns please take her to get checked out.

..

I'm sorry but I'd also be concerned. I too was wondering if your mum looked after younger siblings or babysat for someone and this is where the confusion comes from. Do you know the age of onset for your grandparents?

My mum probably has some form of dementia but is resistant to assessment/diagnosis. She regularly mis-remembers situations or gets elements of memories very badly wrong.

If your mum is open to having a conversation with a GP you can write to them in advance with your concerns so they can be borne in mind.

This is what i did with my dad. I emailed my concerns to the GP first. Then at his appointment they did the initial test. Im not sure if it was down to a covid back log but it took around a year for him to be diagnosed. Therefore i would urge anyone to raise their concerns as soon as possible.

She may have delirium. She needs to see her GP. My mum had this whilst we waited for a dementia diagnosis

A PP has mentioned delirium. (I'm sorry I don't know how to share links) but look it up on Alzheimer's UK/NHS or similar. Underlying infections can cause this and it does need attending to urgently.
If a person is suffering memory problems/dementia a process called "Confabulation" can occur. This is where the mind "fills in blanks" with memories or events that didn't happen.
As others have said, contact your mother's GP with your concerns. If she is agreeable, it may be helpful if she will grant you access to her medical information.