night sedation

[Drinky]

Does anyone have any experience of benefits/impact of night sedation with a person with Alzheimer's? My Mum has very poor mobility but tries to get out of bed at night to go to the toilet and is constantly falling. We have put other risk reduction measures in place but following a recent hospital admission now wondering if this might be a last option.
Any experience/advice gratefully received.

Thanks
Drinky

 

[Shedrech]

Hi Drinky
you must be so concerned about your mum
I assume she is living with you?
I don't have experience of this situation - my dad is now in a care home and gets extremely agitated sometimes so is given meds to calm and settle him - sedation, though, is another step
personally, I would have an in depth discussion with your mum's GP and consultant and see what they recommend - it just seems to me that if she is sedated enough to be immobile, there will be other issues to deal with - and if she is sedated but able to push through that and try to get up but fall, that's another major worry
may I respectfully suggest that you may have reached the time to consider a care home placement for her as she clearly needs support and supervision all day and night, which takes a massive toll on family carers
I hope I haven't spoken out of turn

best wishes to you both

PS sorry - welcome to TP - you've found just the right place to chat over your concerns

 

[fizzie]

Hi there, my mum lived at home with support to the end of her life. We had a similar problem at one stage and I spoke to the GP who was reluctant to prescribe because she said that sleeping pills can make people drowsy on awakening and more prone to falling, that said I know others have used them successfully so I would be inclined to speak to your GP and see what medication options there are.

Having said all that once my Ma had incontinence pads from the NHS she was less worried about getting up and down at night and we also found that two paracetamol before bedtime were helpful and she rarely had disturbed nights - worth a try perhaps.

Good luck it is tricky but there are often things that work or at least help

Welcome !

 

[Drinky]

Thanks all I think I have come to the same conclusions that it may cause more problems than it solves. Mum is actually in a care home and they are very good with her and trying to reduce risk as much as possible. They are concerned that they cannot keep watch over her constantly through the night but do check very regularly. Despite having poor mobility due to physical problems it's amazing what she is capable of in the middle of the night!
It is a worry and I am exploring all options. So nice to have you share your thoughts on TP.

 

[fizzie]

often care homes put sensor mats by the bed so that it immediately alerts them when someone gets up.

If the situation becomes very high risk some homes put up bed rails but this can be distressing and they should be able to manage it in other ways first

 

[Gigglemore]

Might not be appropriate, but have they tried a commode right by her bed at night? Depends at what stage she falls really - if it is the actual rising from the bed you can get bed grab rails which might help to steady her.

Do they leave a small lamp on for her so that she can see her way to the toilet?

What have they already tried?

 

[Drinky]

Yes all of the other things suggested have been done. Due to her physical problems she wouldn't be able to get onto a commode unaided. It is still reassuring that other people have gone through the same thought processes as me though.