How strange

[suzw82]

Can any other person tell me if this situation has ever happened to them. My mum who has end stage dementia mostly lies in a chair all day. Eats sometimes speaks sometimes but usually we cannot make out what she says and constantly and I mean constantly has her eyes closed. Yesterday morning she had a visitor, her minister. He has visited a few times always in the afternoon and usually when she is sound asleep. I did not go ahead and say anything. He walked into her room and said ' hello Jean' her eyes opened her face filled with a smile and she chatted in perfectly normal english to him about peolpe they both knew for a full 20 minutes. He said when we were alone that he was astounded as he had been waiting on a sadder call from me over the last few months. By the time he was out in his car 5 minutes later she was crying and for the rest of the day her eyes were closed and speech back to not being understandable. I know I should have been pleased about this but quite the reverse I was angry that she could turn on such and excellent performance and cannot do it at all for family. Her eyes have been closed now for 16 weeks. Has this happened to anyone else please?

 

[sallyc]

i help care for my grandad who has moderate alzheimers. His sister lives 250 miles away and is at end stages. The weekend before christmas my dad got a call to say grandads sister was in a really bad way. They had stopped all medication and were giving palliative care only, and had been for 2 weeks. They said she could die at any time and as my dad was planning on taking grandad to see her xmas week, they really thought if he wanted to go, he shouldn't delay it, and should go the next day. She was laid in bed, asleep, not talking, didn't recognise anyone etc. When they arrived the next day, she sat up in her bed, recognised them both, and chatted with them for about 30 mins. Dad said she was a bit muddled but made complete sense most of the time! Since then, she's pretty much gone back to how she was, but is still alive! So much for the visit being brought forward as they didn't think she would survive the 3 days!

 

[stardust]

ive had this happen to me, i felt very angry as i felt mum should have been able to connect with me, now i look at it this way (cherrish every oppertunity and window

 

[mynyddisamrs]

Hi - mum (86 + Dementia)is usually unable to string words together or make herself understood when she's at home with us, especially when she's tired. But... on the odd occasion my sister phones and speaks to her ... it's amazing! She'll converse , ask how things are in France, chat away recalling when she visited there .... all in her poshest voice. Once the phone goes down .. she'll not know who she'd spoken to and it's back to gobbledygook!!
Also ... when her great grandchildren visit she can hold great conversations with them. And... when she talks in her sleep that's normal as well!!!
So sorry you're not often seeing your "real" mum.