Mother woke at 2.30 am thought it was morning, had breakfast...

[Mightybanhammer]

This is dementia, isn't it.

She is 87 this spring, in reasonably good health physically, living independently with help from a cleaner and a gardener - but I have noticed an accelerating decline in short term memory - repeating herself very frequently, not grasping things clearly, easily confused. Also suddenly laughing at nothing at all which is a bit disconcerting. On the other hand, she still reads a broadsheet daily and can easily be drawn into lucid discussions on things she has read.

So I had my concerns but this latest night/day thing takes it to another level altogether.

She has a clock with large numbers on it by her bed, and clocks elsewhere and on her appliances, but she was convinced it had stopped. Got up, dressed , made breakfast - all of which would have taken best part of an hour - before realising it was the middle of the night.

She was taken off a low dose of amitryptilline at night time about 18 months ago as it gave her auditory and visual hallucinations. Maybe melatonin would help?

I mentioned GP visit and unsurprisingly she wasn't keen. Perhaps I should ring them myself? I have a letter of authority to discuss stuff with them.

Has anyone any ideas? I am her sole relative and live 40 mins away, work full time.

Thanks

Could be an infection causing confusion, this is not unusual in elderly people. Trip to GP with a urine sample for a check over would be a good idea. Usual suspects are UTI or chest infection, often sub-clinical, so not showing other, more obvious, symptoms.

There are different types of dementia - needs a doctor to diagnose.

My DGM phoned DM at 5.30 the other morning to check whether it was morning or afternoon. We're currently trying a toddler Gro-clock from Mothercare to see if it helps. Early days but seems to be working so far... Worth a try?

Is she usually an early riser? If she is normally up early then at this time of the year it is still dark so maybe if she felt fully rested she really did think it was morning.

I wouldn't panic too much about this incident. As pp said it's as dark at 6 am as it is at 2 at the moment. I think it would be a good idea to check for infection if somebody can get a uterine sample checked but otherwise I wouldn't assume that this is a huge problem. See if it happens again.

Urine not uterine! I think we can leave her uterus alone!

Don't worry too much, a teacher friend of mine once woke up on the sofa at 2130, thought from the clock that it was 0930 and drove to work in a panic... Teachers get tired and confused

UTI perhaps?

Dementia can result in hallucination type issues.

A trip to the GP if your Mum is happy to may be worthwhile.

Cranberry juice helps reduce risk of UTI's (Ocean spray-not imitations😉).

If you have a letter to discuss things with GP a word with them may be worthwhile, most GP's are very tactful if asked to be (used to work with them as a social worker for older people). Good luck. X

Thanks all!

She has recently been put on a drug whose name I forget to dilute her urine to reduce night time frequency, but yes I guess it still could be a u t i? She's also come down with a very heavy cold and bad chest, so that could have been brewing a few days back perhaps.

I recall how urine infections used to badly affect my father. Had not occurred to me this could be it!

It has been a long haul. With elderly parents but large age gap between them, this will be year 15 of it all

Given you have long term concerns about her memory, not just this one off event, yes it is a trip to the GP.

And you have to go with her otherwise she will talk about something completely different and downplay any concerns.

FIL only got to memory clinic when he was already very bad having refused to see there was any sort of issue. it's a long and rather thankless road, isn't it.

I feel your pain 😔

Hang in there you sound very caring 💐

Aww thank you all.
It is draining, isn't it. And by Dad's standards she is still in her prime - he lived to 98!
We have never been especially close but I do try my best and she has mellowed somewhat since Dad died four years ago. Fortunately I have a very family friendly employer so things could be much worse.

.... so yes, Urine sample and accompanied visit to GP.
The child clock idea is good, too, thank you.

Depends on her other symptoms this alone isn’t enough to worry about. My mums done this before when she’s been very tired (insomnia).

My DF is 87 and currently has a UTI and is very, very confused. He’s had it before so we’re hoping that when the antibiotics kick in, he’ll become more lucid again.

This clock www.telmenow.com/shop/dementia-memory-loss/time-association/the-dementia-clock-dual-display?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI9a-r09K82AIV77XtCh0b0wkrEAQYAiABEgLn8PD_BwE

Might help

Thank you. That clock looks really useful. I will rule out the other possible causes before introducing it though.

Update: blue lighted into hospital.
Possible unsuspected heart issues
Nasty chest infection causing memory loss
Vive nhs miracle workers.
She has a bed now. Spent hours on a trolley, care superb. In a cubicle in resus . She is 87.
Bless you all it is chaos

Thinking of you & your Mum. Really good to hear she now has a bed & is getting good care. I hope you get some sleep later!

My mum, 84, gets a bit funny when she gets ITI. She gets them frequently and often no symptoms apart from a bit delirious and personality altered.
We have found that the Urine dipstick tests done at GPs don't always pick up the infection and have had to push for samples to be sent off which then come back positive for UTI.
Course of antibiotics does the trick but make sure you google any drugs before going ahead with them as my dear mum has been prescribed antibiotics that interact badly with her other drugs and made her very sick twice!

Oh no, Just cross posted with your update then. Sorry to hear that, hope she's ok.

Thank you.
The heart thing is a real blinder as we are strong as oxen generally.
Am so tired ,
Had a courtesy car today from local garage thank god. But driving it so far and back on unfamiliar unlit roads just added to stress.
Bed !

Oh goodness, you poor thing.

Was about to say the getting up thing in itself would not have caused concern overly to me, but given that you say she is starting generally to be forgetful and repetitive, it might be time for a tactful memory test at the GP. We got Mum to go by talking to the GP ourselves and they called her in for a "routine" assessment.

God what a roller coaster.

She is now medically fit to go home but waiting physio and s w assessment. Confusion got worse, then much better.

That is the good bit. The bad bit is she is convinced she is still seriously ill and that the treatment has made her worse than ever. Says she has had a bad reaction to the medication( untrue). Refuses to get out of bed, says she can't walk and conversation is a long long monologue of how dreadful it all is. a long ceaseless catalogue of complaints. The food, the nurses, the other patients, the hospital equipment, the food, the nurses...She was utterly vile to me yesterday too. Has been making long lists of largely pointless demands. I got to the car and cried! I have visited every day - three hour round trip-but not doing it again today. Let her stew. I am her only close relative. I am keeping the people at church informed so they can visit if they want to.

She was just like this when my late father first needed extra home care, blocked every effort to get him the help he needed.

She will be the same about her own.

Your last post sounds a lot like my mum - objecting to medication, long list of complaints and largely pointless demands. She was in hospital for a long time then recently moved into a care home. I'm also her only close relative. Absolutely take a break from visiting her. I only visited every few days and it gave me a break as well as the chance to sort out some things for her.
She's very demanding generally, but the only time she shouted at me was when she had delirium following an infection.
Could some of the people from the church visit her occasionally?