Dad awake at night thinking it's daytime

[Joybelles]

Can anyone suggest what is wrong with Dad? He is as bright as a button in the daytime, he can remember everything we tell him, asks about alsorts of topics we have discussed recently. Although we have taken his car off him and stopped him driving he still thinks about when the the insurance, mot & service are due. This is only one example of how he thinks.

The only problem appears to be in the nighttime, he goes to bed around 6 -6.30 (can't get him to stay up any later) by 8 pm - 9.30 pm he's up again and dressed and in the lounge at the care home asking where everyone is. He tells us that it was pitch black at 8 am although it's daylight at 6am so obviously it was 8pm. He will say things like there was no lunch yesterday so he had to have a packet of crisps from his 'stash'.

Any thoughts would be appreciated. We are waiting for a appointment at the memory clinic.


Sent from my iPad using Talking Point

 

[love.dad.but..]

Sorry to say that with my dad once his body clock stopped working as the dementia took hold and his days and nights flipped they never changed back even though visual clues were pointed out. Lots of getting dressed again endless times during the night when I lived with him. Same in the care home and try as they might carers could not persuade him back to bed so he generally had tea in the lounge and nodded off there until the dressing himself phase eased a bit but he never totally settled at night. The care home should be used to going with the flow of your dads body clock.