New person....real crazy question

[Hobbydiva]

When my grandfather developed dementia, he claims to have seen a little blond boy who kept stealing his shoes. Problem was, there was no blond boy. My mother has been diagnosed with dementia after a very bad fall (spiral fracture of femur, then she stood on it and broke it; 8 pins, 1 plate later.....) and now SHE'S seeing a brown haired child she claims she's being told to watch (babysit). She's in a rehab/nursing home. No children. Is this common? I am so new to this and I don't know what to think.

 

[canary]

Hi @Hobbydiva and welcome to Talking Point.

There is no such thing as a stupid question on here so dont worry.
In answer to your question - yes, hallucinations are really quite common in the later stages of dementia and for some reason a lot of them involve children.
My mum, while still at home, thought there was a school above her (she lived in a bungalow) and the children made a racket going up and down the stairs (!) and that they used to come in and move everything. It was, of course, she herself that was moving everything, but she didnt realise it.

 

[Jaded'n'faded]

Seeing small children is incredibly common - I have no idea why! So is 'someone came in during the night and has stolen my shoes, my jewellery, the remote control, the electricity...' - you name it.

My mother frequently saw 'piles of dead children' in the corridors (though she didn't find it distressing!) and men would come into her room and perform unspeakable acts before disappearing with her pens, bookmarks and favourite knickers.

 

[Jale]

Not sure about seeing children, but Mum has a man who sleeps in her wardrobe and then comes out and goes under the bed. Recently she has seen a lot of people sitting around the bed of the room opposite hers -both times there is no-one there.

 

[Emmcee]

When my grandfather developed dementia, he claims to have seen a little blond boy who kept stealing his shoes. Problem was, there was no blond boy. My mother has been diagnosed with dementia after a very bad fall (spiral fracture of femur, then she stood on it and broke it; 8 pins, 1 plate later.....) and now SHE'S seeing a brown haired child she claims she's being told to watch (babysit). She's in a rehab/nursing home. No children. Is this common? I am so new to this and I don't know what to think.

Hallucinations are also very common in the early stages of various traumatic events as a result of what is called a delirium (acute confusional state).

 

[Female1952]

My aunt was sure she had people who lived in her loft. They kept her awake at night. The police had visited and confirmed they were there, but said they couldn't make them leave ...