where do i go from here

deedi

Registered User
Jun 11, 2013
20
0
someone please advise me im am in despare.My mum has been showing strange behaviour ,imagining people are in her house,coming from the television,just had a phone call and had to go and check all the rooms ,in the wardrobe under beds,shes petrified.She had a memory test last week and passed it,gp says shes fine but she thinks the people on tv are talking to her and are in her house.i just don't know what to do,should I make an appointment with the gp :confused:
 

Izzy

Volunteer Moderator
Aug 31, 2003
73,996
0
72
Dundee
Hi and welcome.

Yes I think you should get another appointment for your mum as soon as possible. Has she been checked for a urine infection? I know that these UTIs can result in some very strange behaviour.
 

rajahh

Registered User
Aug 29, 2008
2,790
0
Hertfordshire
someone please advise me im am in despare.My mum has been showing strange behaviour ,imagining people are in her house,coming from the television,just had a phone call and had to go and check all the rooms ,in the wardrobe under beds,shes petrified.She had a memory test last week and passed it,gp says shes fine but she thinks the people on tv are talking to her and are in her house.i just don't know what to do,should I make an appointment with the gp :confused:

Simple answer is yes . Dealings with these visions isnigh impossible.thankfully my husband is not frightened by them so we do nothing about it. If uy our mother is frightened then it is a different scenario .hope gp is helpful
 

deedi

Registered User
Jun 11, 2013
20
0
Hi and welcome.

Yes I think you should get another appointment for your mum as soon as possible. Has she been checked for a urine infection? I know that these UTIs can result in some very strange behaviour.

I will get her urine tested tomorrow,i just don't know how to handle this,she is showing all the signs of alzheimers /dementia.last week at the end of my tether I told her she was imagining it and she was confused,big mistake!!!what on earth is the next step forward.she obviously cant be left on her own now :(
 

deedi

Registered User
Jun 11, 2013
20
0
Simple answer is yes . Dealings with these visions isnigh impossible.thankfully my husband is not frightened by them so we do nothing about it. If uy our mother is frightened then it is a different scenario .hope gp is helpful

hi,at least iv got a name for it now... visions ....shes absolutely petrified.and lives alone.she truly believes these people are talking to her and answers them back.what a strange situation.i just don't know how to handle this.:(
 

stanleypj

Registered User
Dec 8, 2011
10,712
0
North West
So sorry you're having to cope with this. Hallucinations are very frightening when you first encounter them. It's difficult to imagine what it must be like for someone living alone and experiencing this but it does happen........

The next step will depend very much on what the GP does. You want him to refer her to a memory clinic or, failing that, the nearest thing locally to that. People often find it helpful to write down examples of all the worrying symptoms they have experienced - we all know that 'memory' is at best not very helpful shorthand for a lot more.

I hope you're able to get the support you need. As has been said, infections like UTIs can make any problems much worse and if they are successfully treated, big improvements are not unknown.
 

deedi

Registered User
Jun 11, 2013
20
0
So sorry you're having to cope with this. Hallucinations are very frightening when you first encounter them. It's difficult to imagine what it must be like for someone living alone and experiencing this but it does happen........

The next step will depend very much on what the GP does. You want him to refer her to a memory clinic or, failing that, the nearest thing locally to that. People often find it helpful to write down examples of all the worrying symptoms they have experienced - we all know that 'memory' is at best not very helpful shorthand for a lot more.

I hope you're able to get the support you need. As has been said, infections like UTIs can make any problems much worse and if they are successfully treated, big improvements are not unknown.

hi ,mum made me cancel the memory clinic because it said on the letter mental health,and my dad had her sectioned when they were splitting up so she mistrusts anything to do with mental health.....its so frustrating because in her lucid moments shes fine,but they are few and far between now.
 

Sunbell

Registered User
Jul 29, 2010
712
0
Yorkshire, England
Hi deedi, sorry your dear mum is having these terrible hallucinations, it is very distressing. Unfortunately it is one of the phases that can happen with AD/Dementia.
It is pointless trying to make mum understand that these people are not real because to her they are very real.

My mum went through this with T.V's and also she was afraid of pictures of people in magazines. Even her reflection in mirrors caused her fear as she could not recognise herself and thought someone was in the room, we had to cover all the mirrors up with fablon or remove any where possible. We simply had to turn off the T.V. as there was no other way to calm the situation. It was so sad.

Is mum on any medication yet for Alzheimer/Dementia? This helped calm my mum down a bit so it would be advisable to see her G.P.

Hope she soon settles and comes out of this terrible phase. Take care of her.

Love Sunbell :)
 

stanleypj

Registered User
Dec 8, 2011
10,712
0
North West
O.K., assuming the GP is aware of this sad history, he or she should certainly be taking mum's problems more seriously. It can be helpful to write to the GP with all relevant concerns before an appointment. One way or another, you need support, as does your mum.
 

deedi

Registered User
Jun 11, 2013
20
0
Hi deedi, sorry your dear mum is having these terrible hallucinations, it is very distressing. Unfortunately it is one of the phases that can happen with AD/Dementia.
It is pointless trying to make mum understand that these people are not real because to her they are very real.

My mum went through this with T.V's and also she was afraid of pictures of people in magazines. Even her reflection in mirrors caused her fear as she could not recognise herself and thought someone was in the room, we had to cover all the mirrors up with fablon or remove any where possible. We simply had to turn off the T.V. as there was no other way to calm the situation. It was so sad.

Is mum on any medication yet for Alzheimer/Dementia? This helped calm my mum down a bit so it would be advisable to see her G.P.

Hope she soon settles and comes out of this terrible phase. Take care of her.

Love Sunbell :)

hi,no mums not on any medication she refused point blank to go to the memory clinic.gp said shes fine because she passed the memory test,shes showing all the signs of alzheimers /dementia.so now I need to start from the beginning again.i feel we have wasted so much time and she could have been on medication :confused:
 

deedi

Registered User
Jun 11, 2013
20
0
O.K., assuming the GP is aware of this sad history, he or she should certainly be taking mum's problems more seriously. It can be helpful to write to the GP with all relevant concerns before an appointment. One way or another, you need support, as does your mum.

right thank you so much,i will do that and get an appointment for asap.think im trying to protect mum too much and I need to be stronger and face up to everything,and I need to admit theres a bigger problem .
 

stanleypj

Registered User
Dec 8, 2011
10,712
0
North West
right thank you so much,i will do that and get an appointment for asap.think im trying to protect mum too much and I need to be stronger and face up to everything,and I need to admit theres a bigger problem .

I hope you feel a little better now. You're dealing with a very difficult situation, everyone struggles.

Let us know how you get on. There will be loads of support on TP.

Take care
 

Sunbell

Registered User
Jul 29, 2010
712
0
Yorkshire, England
Deedi, maybe if the doctor is made aware in advance of your appointment about your mum being unable to accept the situation and mum believes there is nothing wrong with her (my mum always said there was nothing wrong with her and firmly believed it!) then you may have to tell her 'a few little white lies' to get her there, say maybe just for annual check-up which people over a certain age have to have now. Make sure the doctor is aware not to mention mental health or memory problems. I had to do this with mum and when eventually she was put on medication I said it was for helping with her arthiritis, which she accepted.

Unfortunately, 'little white lies' have to be used a lot when your loved one is going through this illness, believe me the times I have felt so bad having to do this but in the end if it gains results then so be it.

Hope this helps a bit with the problem.

Love Sunbell x
 

Mamsgirl

Registered User
Jun 2, 2013
635
0
Melbourne, Australia
Hi Deedi,

Not sure I understand the GP saying someone who's in your Mum's state is fine on the basis of a memory test. My Mum (VaD), needs all sorts of support yet scored 29/30 on the last test.

Agree with suggestions to let the GP know in writing what's happening. Perhaps the letter, by establishing an audit trail, will raise the ante somewhat. Certainly hope so. Any chance of you intercepting future letters or better still, having the issuing authority know to avoid using trigger terms like mental health?

All the best,
Toni
 

ljane

Registered User
Apr 24, 2012
10
0
try not too worry

someone please advise me im am in despare.My mum has been showing strange behaviour ,imagining people are in her house,coming from the television,just had a phone call and had to go and check all the rooms ,in the wardrobe under beds,shes petrified.She had a memory test last week and passed it,gp says shes fine but she thinks the people on tv are talking to her and are in her house.i just don't know what to do,should I make an appointment with the gp :confused:

i know how hard and distressing this can be my father is the same with the tv thinks they are talking to him and that they are gonna come out to get him or talk to him sometimes, when i mentioned this to the hospital they said as long as he doesn't get aggitated then its ok, so now i just let him talk to them, as harsh as that sounds, if he does appear too frightened by what is happening on there then i simply turn over or switch off, sorry cannot be of more help but try not too worry too much as hard as that is just mention to gp again.:)
 

deedi

Registered User
Jun 11, 2013
20
0
hi everyone,iv been to the gp today and iv wrote everything down in a letter for her,also water test came back ok so its not a uti.i feel more positive today,i know I have got to stay as strong as possible,i cant thank you all enough for the advice I know I can do this :)
 

Izzy

Volunteer Moderator
Aug 31, 2003
73,996
0
72
Dundee
That's good news it's not a UTI. I'm glad you're feeling more positive. x
 

LYN T

Registered User
Aug 30, 2012
6,958
0
Brixham Devon
Hi

I got to a stage with my husband where I just didn't have the tv on. He would fixate on a 'bad' word like 'kill' or 'murder' and suddenly it was all being directed at him. He experienced terrible fear over what he perceived as a comment being directed at him.

I'm sorry to say this but your Mum needs some help to alleviate her fears.

Make sure the GP knows all the symptoms and ask for her to be referred to the mental health service for an assessment. They will come to your home to do the assessment.

Take vare

Lyn T
 

Nick99

Registered User
Apr 30, 2013
84
0
Lincolnshire
The tests seem very poor and the family know the true situation long before the tests can identify dementia. Having a diagnosis is very helpful but even without it you still have to deal with the problems. I suppose we were lucky in that the consultant came round to see my FIL in his bungalow and listened to our concerns and the stories we could tell and even though FIL did well on the tests the consultant still diagnosed Alzheimer. If the doctor is relying on the tests maybe you can ask to see a specialist who will take a more rounded view. At the doctors how many of us have sat behind our relation shaking our heads when they say their is nothing wrong, they never forget anything and they have no problems. To fail the tests you have to be pretty far down the road and of course the family can pick upon the signs much much earlier.
 

Fed Up

Registered User
Aug 4, 2012
464
0
I'm not medical but your describing Paranoid Psychosis, my mum had this a long time before Dementia set in fact Dementia relieved her symptoms. I think you said she's been sectioned so has had experience of Mental Health issues in the past. So you GP must address this matter much more seriously forget lets wait and see please help her. What does your dad want you do do as its to just your problem. I'm sorry and don't know how old you are but this sounds a lot more serious than being confused.
If she refuses to take medication much like my mum sometimes; I hate to say this but Eastenders did portray this well in a storyline about Jean but she may need much more help than a GP can provide.
But I would actually stamp my foot say to the GP she is a danger to herself (as otherwise rights rear their head, she has a right to be ill etc) and insist she has access to a Mental Heath professional ie Admiralty nurse, asap. Call the GP out as well that is usually enough to get something done.
You have my sympathy and hope you keep us up to date. lots of hugs been there and done that but never argue with her and don't get upset you can't change the situation just work around it. If it helps my mum took medication for 20 years and was fine and although had breakthroughs on occasion she mostly was free from fear and sociable and my mum thought all sorts of weird stuff.
 

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