Concerns about my grandad

[Sarah.chambers1230]

Hi everyone. Hope everyone is well. So my grandad is 85, and not been diagnosed with anything... He forgets things but isnt too bad....but lately he keeps saying at night time a mist comes into his house and follows him round, and now has added at night if he looks in the mirror the tv doesn't match what's actually on the tv and he sees people or kids waving at him..... And other things. Now i looked.up and its says people with Alzheimer's can hallucinate!? Should i be concerned? thank you!

 

[Sarasa]

Hi @Sarah.chambers1230 and Welcome to Dementia Talking Point. This is a very friendly and supportive place and you'll get lots of help and support here.
People with dementia can have hallucinations, but it could be caused by something else. It might be an idea to email or write to your grandad's GP with a list of your concerns and ask him/her to invite him in for a check up, that's if you think he would go. When I became concerned about my mum I piggybacked an appointment she already had.
Does your grandad live with you or another family member or does he live on his own? It might be worth starting to set things up ahead of him maybe needing more help in the future. If you haven't already done so getting Power of Attorney set up is important as it will make helping him so much easier in the future. You can also ask social services to do an assessment of his needs, even if he would have money to pay for help. In some areas Age Concern have a service where people will do light housework or take an elderly person out to the shops etc.
I'm sure others will be along shortly with their suggestions and experiences.

 

[Sarah.chambers1230]

Thank you for the reply! I did think of that but i think he would be very annoyed if we went behind his back! He lives alone, but has a warden who visits most days to see how he is, gets shopping if he needs it and me and my mum come every Saturday to do shopping and see him for a few hours but he does manage to keep himself well kept and his house. Maybe it would be worth giving her a call see what she says

 

[lemonbalm]

Hello @Sarah.chambers1230 . I may be asking the obvious but has your Grandad had an eyesight test recently? It might be worth ruling out any sight problems. It's probably also worth checking whether any existing medication could be causing these symptoms too.

 

[Palerider]

There's a good basic intro on hallucinations here as well:

Hallucinations

Get information and resources for Alzheimer's and other dementias from the Alzheimer's Association.

www.alz.org

 

[Sarah.chambers1230]

Hello @Sarah.chambers1230 . I may be asking the obvious but has your Grandad had an eyesight test recently? It might be worth ruling out any sight problems. It's probably also worth checking whether any existing medication could be causing these symptoms too.

He had an eye test recently and was given new glasses! I will check thank you

 

[canary]

He had an eye test recently and was given new glasses!

Does he have something like macular degeneration? That can cause hallucinations.