my wifes alzheimers journey the latest stage.

[ASPIRE]

Has anyones relation got to or has been through the latest change my wife is experiencing on her alzheimers journey.
She is in a nursing home she has a carer with her all the while
Now she cant settle shes on the go all the while walking then sitting down for a few seconds and then she stands up and walks off again.
Difficult to feed her
She was on respiridon but now shes on nothing
The mental health doctor says that the walking is good for her its keeping her fit but what about her quality to life.
She cant communicate and she walks with her head bent down and shows no expression on her face and shes not interested in anything
The mental health doctor said there is nothing else pill wise to give her to slow her down a bit without making her sleep alot.
This is very hard for me to visit and see her like this.
Is the mental health doctor right or is there something else that could help her .
Your comments please.

 

[Kevinl]

I call them "the corridor people" I know that when I go to visit my wife each day the same people will be walking the corridors from the moment I get there until I leave. My wife is a junior member of the club in that she does sit for a while sometimes while awake unlike the full members who don't, they just walk or sleep.
Some walk head down some head up, my wife's a head down walker, usually looking down and to her right. If she comes to an obstruction like a wall or a door she stops, turns slowly always to the right then carries on walking.
I have to feed her on the move some days but normally she will sit down and be fed although many of the others have to be fed "on the hoof" by the staff.
I don't think there's anything they can give that stops it without making them a fall risk, if there is then I've never seen it used in both the assessment unit she was on or the nursing home she's in now and she as I say is a nothing like as bad as some of the residents who walk day and night without seeming to stop.
I'd put 6 of the 30 residents in the walking club as full members and another 3 as junior members so I think it's pretty common.
My wife had another fall today some the homes fall risk assessment team are seeing her again in the new year. I doubt they'll suggest anything much because many kinds of medication would make the fall risk greater so would be counter productive.
I understand it makes visits difficult, I spend about an hour on Christmas day following my wife around with a plate of Christmas dinner, I just accept it but I do see other visitors who struggle to cope with it but it's back to the philosophy of "me having to live in her world because she can't live in mine" I can't change her behaviour and I don't want her "chemically coshed" and possibly put at risk, even if that were an option.
K

 

[love.dad.but..]

Dad was a day and night pacer...how he kept going as an elderly gent I don't know. In a perverse way I think the continuous exercise was good for his health! He too would be difficult to stop his corridor wandering to eat or rest his very swollen ankles. It never stopped and I always felt the compulsion wouldn't until he was incapable of doing it through immobility. It did lessen though as he declined and became more sleepy during the day but this also saw other changes in not wanting to eat and double incontinence so a general decline until his end of life. Others at his NH were similar walkers. When I was looking after dad in his home and he had got up and dressed so many times during one night...usual behaviour sadly...I asked him apart from getting up to go the the toilet...what makes you get up to walk at night and his reply summed up the compulsion of thinking he needed to be somewhere....his work...his mum...anywhere other than where he was...'I don't know I just need to'

 

[jaymor]

My husband was a compulsive walker too. He received 1:1 care 24 hours a day and his Carer was changed every hour. No Carer could be expected to walk with him for the whole of their 12 hour shift.

I would visit and he would be missing, his Carer for that hour had taken him into the larger nursing home next door to have a walk round there. He also regularly went to the laundry to take the dirty laundry and help push the clean laundry back. They tried very hard to give a purpose to his constant walking. Medication was never mentioned and if it had I certainly would not have allowed it.

We spent our daily visits walking with him. When we did sit down to have a drink our daughter pulled up a foot stool and sat right in front of him with her hands on his lap and tried to keep him seated while he had a drink. It did help but of course the Carers could not do this they walked and carried his tea.

Very wearing at the time but so much more upsetting to see him bedbound further into the illness.

 

[Juliasdementiablog]

My mum's not at that stage so my advice is only from other advice sources. There is probably a purpose to your wife's walking, and while she's walking she has some hope of fulfilling her purpose. Engaging with her while walking may help her to become more conscious of your presence, singing or playing her favourite songs might help too, or dedicated engagement with her, talking to her, looking at her (with eye contact), speaking in a voice that is completely present and caring may help to get her to stop and spend some time with you. But if that doesn't work, and you think she is happy walking I would suggest just go with it and walk with her, maybe taking her hand or arm gently and walking arm in arm. Good luck.

 

[Grannie G]

My mother was a corridor walker , up and down, day and night. Thankfully it stopped eventually. I'm not sure whether or not she was sedated, the home wasn't`t the best for information, but I was glad to see her in a calmer state. She never lost her mobility.

 

[pootlefi]

My mum's not at that stage so my advice is only from other advice sources. There is probably a purpose to your wife's walking, and while she's walking she has some hope of fulfilling her purpose. Engaging with her while walking may help her to become more conscious of your presence, singing or playing her favourite songs might help too, or dedicated engagement with her, talking to her, looking at her (with eye contact), speaking in a voice that is completely present and caring may help to get her to stop and spend some time with you. But if that doesn't work, and you think she is happy walking I would suggest just go with it and walk with her, maybe taking her hand or arm gently and walking arm in arm. Good luck.