Jerking while awake or asleep

[MTO]

ive been reading old posts about involuntary spasms of arms / legs, and several posts indicate it is a symptom of advanced dementia. My husband has been having this problem , asleep or awake, for a few months now. He was diagnosed with vascular dementia, a year ago, and mixed dementia about 5 months ago , and is not yet on any medication. I would not describe his dementia as advanced, but who knows?
Is there any recent thinking on what could cause these spasms in his case, and if there is a dietary supplement that might help?
Thanks for any help,

 

[Lady M]

Morning MTO, yes I can sympathise as OH has/had similar for ages. At the very beginning I thought he mustbe dreaming but when the jerking became so great that the bed(we shared a double then ) bounced and woke me I became concerned.it also contributed to his falling from the bed. The wondered if it was a seizure of sorts! Mentioned at all times to the neurologist, who included this with other symptoms and suggested LBD ?? with Parkinsonism 2016......
I now realise it’s a while since the last occurrence, and recently memory clinic have diagnosed MD ( Vascular and Alzheimer’s) .......likewise OH does not take any meds for dementia.
I did keep notes of dates and time of the jerking but it never followed any pattern"...........so I cannot know or suggest any reasons or treatments etc.....I expect others may.
I can only say at present it appears to have ceased.?????????????
I do understand how distressing this is and wish you some respite from it!
Regards.

 

[maryjoan]

Likewise here. My OH has vascular/mixed dementia - diagnosed just over 2 years ago.
He dozes a lot in the day time in his chair, and his arms and legs also jerk and spasm about. He is unaware of it.
He is on no medication, and since the diagnosis we have had no follow up appts at all - they say, no cure, no treatment - and basically, I just get on with it.
I am very unhappy about his life and mine, but there is nothing I can do about it. We have SS input and some financial assistance, but nothing medically.

 

[good gosh]

My wife jerks her left leg once every 4 minutes or so, repeated 4 to 6 times, three or four mornings a week, for the last 2 years, when nearing her wakening time. Its always a preamble to an angry waking.

I currently suspect it's caused by dreams about things she most fears - and she has remarked about bad dreams a few times. So I've taken to stroking her head, brow and nose before she full wakes, for the last few weeks if I am woken in time, and this seems to help her wake in a more contented state. .

 

[Louise7]

The spasms/twitching may be myoclonic jerks. My Mum gets them when she is very drowsy.

 

[TessB]

My mum has started involuntary jerking, usually (I think) when she is asleep/half asleep. She also sometimes does a really big jerk, thinking she's falling. She has Alzheimer's and vascular dementia, and heart failure. Sometimes she reaches out too. This was happening when she had a TIA on 01/12/2023 so I'm worried these symptoms might be a warning of another TIA. And she is doing more talking in her sleep now too.

 

[SeaSwallow]

My mum has started involuntary jerking, usually (I think) when she is asleep/half asleep. She also sometimes does a really big jerk, thinking she's falling. She has Alzheimer's and vascular dementia, and heart failure. Sometimes she reaches out too. This was happening when she had a TIA on 01/12/2023 so I'm worried these symptoms might be a warning of another TIA. And she is doing more talking in her sleep now too.

Hello @TessB If you are at all worried about your mum. especially as she has previously had a TIA, please consult her GP as a matter of urgency, or if necessary call 111.

 

[Silversally]

My husband has always twitched a little when he is falling asleep. It got worse when he got dementia 2 years ago but recently seems to have stopped, Howevere the other night I felt him jerking more than he has ever done before but then realised he was laughing almost uncontrollably. He had great difficulty telling me what was funny because he couldn’t stop laughing but when he finally told me, it was in no way funny - just something that happened a long time ago!

 

[scotlass]

for years my O H twitched a lot...usually, but not always when he was sleeping...it was so bad that I had to move to another bed, his elbows were continually digging in .this was quite a few years before he was diagnosed with alzheimers, and he didn't know he was doing it , he also did it when he was sitting on the chair dozing through the day. when he was diagnosed ,he was prescribed Donepezil, for the alzheimers, and he doesn't twitch through the day now, but as I sleep in another room, I can't say for sure that it's stopped through the night....

 

[TessB]

Thank you all for your replies. I spoke to the GP today and the scan mum had last December also showed a small meningioma on the right side of the brain. The GP thinks it is probably this that is causing the involuntary movements. The scan also showed evidence of a previous stroke, also on the right side of the brain.