Advice please

[dede5177]

I gave up work 2 years ago to care for my mom with dementia and other health problems my sister thinks she should be in a home I as an Environmental Health Officer am not that keen on the level of care in homes and hope never to use them.
Mom is now prescribed anti depressants to cope with anxiety and other medication for a thyroid disorder both of which are improving but are new drugs to her.
the Dr declined to treat (at the moment) the hallucinations that mom suffers with that centre on a man she grew up with who leaves for the front at the start of ww2. He (Alan) also gets married just before leaving to a woman mom knew. Mom is constantly on about this situation and I can't any longer distract her. Mom will shout from windows both day and in the night, make gestures at passing traffic, mistake men in the street for this man and get me up in the middle of the night because of the noise she is experiencing (we actually leave in a very quiet cul-de-sac where there is no one passing at night). Any advice I bought a dog which she likes as she had dogs as a child but walking him is a slow process, I don't seem able to physically tire her out and yet she can't concentrate on books tv or facebook. any advice.

 

[AlsoConfused]

Are you saying the GP just wants to wait a little, to test how your mom gets on with the other two new drugs before trying to tackle the hallucinations? That sounds a sensible idea, medically speaking. As carer, though, what you're going through sounds pretty hellish.

Could your sister and any other family members spend more time with your mom to help you survive the interval before the GP feels it's right to treat her hallucinations?

 

[Mums helper]

it sounds tough. Have you asked for a referral to a psychiatrist or the memory clinic? My mums GP seemed hopeless when I asked for help. She got discharged from the memory clinic because she got so distressed by being unable to answer the questions I had to stop the assessment. She started getting very agitated at night because of the war and soldiers marching through her bedroom, I saw a different GP who referred her to the psychiatrist who did a home visit and prescribed a low dose of Pericyzine which made a lot of difference and helped her chill out. Looking after someone with dementia is hard x



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[dede5177]

dede5177

Are you saying the GP just wants to wait a little, to test how your mom gets on with the other two new drugs before trying to tackle the hallucinations? That sounds a sensible idea, medically speaking. As carer, though, what you're going through sounds pretty hellish.

Could your sister and any other family members spend more time with your mom to help you survive the interval before the GP feels it's right to treat her hallucinations?

It seemed and I agreed most important to treat depression but as it gets better the other stuff is worse and I don't feel its right to wait, cant now get an appointment with G.P.

My sister does come for a couple of hours every other day and even stays now on Tuesdays but even with 24 hrs away from home I worry what she will do next! My sister who is less used to it and thought she had all the answers as she read all the books is now also confused as it is simple to say agree and distract the person but hard to do.

There are no other family members close the grandchildren are in late teens and early twenties but are at an even bigger loss when trying to deal with Nanas moods.

Thanks for reply though.

 

[dede5177]

it sounds tough. Have you asked for a referral to a psychiatrist or the memory clinic? My mums GP seemed hopeless when I asked for help. She got discharged from the memory clinic because she got so distressed by being unable to answer the questions I had to stop the assessment. She started getting very agitated at night because of the war and soldiers marching through her bedroom, I saw a different GP who referred her to the psychiatrist who did a home visit and prescribed a low dose of Pericyzine which made a lot of difference and helped her chill out. Looking after someone with dementia is hard x



Sent from my iPad using Talking Point

Thanks for reply, and advice my mom was dropped by psychiatrist as she refuses all medication so I am back to GP only help.