Dementia and headaches.

[ChrisMc66]

Hi folks.
my mum suffers from dementia and has recently started with headaches almost daily and she is seeing double. Could this be part of her dementia? We have been in contact with the GP but they haven’t been too helpful. Any ideas for pain relief.? Paracetamol doesn’t work.
Thanks in anticipation.
Chris

 

[thistlejak]

Just a thought bases on our own experiences .
MIL complained of head pain when she was dehydrated , FIL said he had a headache when he was anaemic.
Both of them ended up in hospital ( at different times ) due to them complaining of persistent head pain/ache - this was when we found out the cause.
If it is a possibility can you get the GP to do some blood tests?

 

[canary]

The double vision does not sound like dementia - it sounds more like a TIA. An optician might be able to see what it going on and perhaps refer you to the eye clinic.

 

[Longbody]

I don’t have answers but your thread is the nearest to my mum’s situation. My mum has had daily headaches for the past two years. she spends a lot of time in bed, in pain, dizzy and confused. no medical tests have given an answer. She was diagnosed with dementia but none of the various anti- depressant type medication they gave helped with the headaches. Now they say that it is caused by anxiety and told her to take paracetamol, drink more water and exercise and de- stress. I haven’t really been able to get her to do any of these things But perhaps it may help you.

 

[Cazcaz]

Mum had headaches basically daily. The doctor prescribed low dose aspirin and stay hydrated.
The problem was we got To a point where we had to hide the medications as mum was found one day opening out strips of tablets, her reason “well I might as well take them all together, it saves time rather than taking some now and some later”
As soon as mums meds went out of sight, the headaches stopped. We’re not sure how much of it was real and how much was “faked”.

 

[KatyKat]

Hi folks.
my mum suffers from dementia and has recently started with headaches almost daily and she is seeing double. Could this be part of her dementia? We have been in contact with the GP but they haven’t been too helpful. Any ideas for pain relief.? Paracetamol doesn’t work.
Thanks in anticipation.
Chris

Has your mum seen an opthamologist recently? The double vision might be caused by migraines, but it's best to rule out eye problems such as severe astigmatism and cataracts.