Alzheimers Support

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Sundowning, Sundowners and Night Terrors — Are they all the same thing

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Sundowning Sundowners Night Terrors

Are they all the same

 

I recently spoke with a friend diagnosed with Early On-set Alzheimer’s. He described  new symptoms that have begun to plague him. “Night Terrors” was the best he could manage to describe his fright-filled nights. At least, for a couple hours each night, as he sleeps, he is attacked by unbelievable terrors. Similar to a nightmare, he says,  but profoundly more frightening, leaving him fearful to fall asleep at all.

I related my Mom’s experience with Sundowning–as told in this article, “What causes Sundowners and Sleepless Nights.” But my friend said it wasn’t exactly the same for him.

From the people I’ve spoken to, Sundowning (sundowners) is suffered differently by each Alzheimer’s patient. Some Alzheimer’s and Dementia sufferers have no Sundowner or Sundowning symptoms at all. While others suffer a variance on the same theme: “Sleepless Nights.” Some sleep fit-fully, some cry or moan, some wander or roam the house, while others, such as my friend, have horrible terrors that keep them awake for hours.

How ever the symptoms present themselves, it’s an odd behavior and, as far as I’ve been able to discover, the experts have little information about Sundowning (Sundowners), it’s cause or symptoms.

I did learn from this friend that his own cure for the night terrors has a common thread with my Mom’s eventual remedy. My friend found that by wearing head-phones tuned to his favorite music on the radio, lulled him to a peaceful sleep and often allowed him to awake in the morning feeling rested and without memory of any night terrors.

My Mom always wanted to be left alone and would not allow me to soothe her. I would try to hold her hand and offer consolation but she did not want it. She would sit on the side of the bed and rock herself, humming quietly, as though lulling a baby to sleep. And most nights it worked for her.

I wish I had been aware of my friend’s idea back then. My mom loved gentle, soft music and would have been happy to try his idea with head phones and a melody to cure her sorrowful nights.
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If your loved one suffers from Sundowners or Night Terrors or becomes agitated or distraught during the day or night, soft music is often helpful. It seems to calm and relax them, especially if they are already a music lover. I have  learned from others, though, that even patients who didn’t care for music before they had Alzheimer’s or Dementia have become converts to soft music after their illness.

My Mom needed a hearing aid but refused to wear it due to all the “noise in her head,” she called it. But she loved music and a soft tune from her head-phones. So if you’re looking for a calming affect for your loved one, don’t forget to try head-phones and soft music at bed time too..

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When to Move someone with dementia to nursing home?

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When to  move someone with dementia to nursing home

Moving the person with Alzheimer’s to a Nursing Home can be a difficult decision for the caregiver… especially if you’re a close relative.

Too often in life we are forced to do things we promised our parent or relative that we would never do. I was certain that Mom’s condition would never come to that, but a year into her late stage Alzheimers I found myself faced with the possibility that I could no longer care for her at home.  We began our search for a “good” nursing home. The thought was not a happy one, I dreaded it. I knew the search would be awful, thinking I’d never find one that met the criteria for my mother’s care.

Circumstances change almost daily for the person with Alzheimers, their families and their caregivers. Planning ahead is near impossible. In the beginning, Mom was so adamant that she would never live in a nursing that we contemplated purchasing a small motor home or travel trailer for our own back yard; a pretend home for Mom during the day while she retired to the main house each evening.

Our thought being that Mom would be satisfied knowing she had her own place at night and gladly return to our home at night. Before we could begin a search for a travel trailer or motor home, Mom’s condition worsened and she could not be left alone, even temporarily.

I had a home-based business, a supportive husband, and had been certain I could take care of Mom in my own home for as long as she needed care. I had two computers on a network and envisioned the two of us working side by side, me doing business and Mom playing solitaire. (That’s another story) What a spot of fantasy that turned out to be.

But there is no written progression for dementia, and the 7 step and stages have no designated width.  Each individual is different, different symptoms, different behaviors, and different time lapses between each.

Some behaviors related to Alzheimers have their own labels. Labels that only another caregiver could understand; “sundowners”, “shadowing”, “pack-rat”, “junk-mail”, “violence”, “want to go home.”  One caregiver may find a behavior particularly hard to endure, while another caregiver may be disturbed by a totally different behavior.

Not all Alzheimer’s patients become violent, but some do. And taking care of a violent patient is not a matter of endurance and stamina but of safety.

A loved one needs to be moved to a nursing home if they are continually violent.

Sometimes medical issues can cause this behavior; a urinary infection or other medical problem. But sometimes, it’s simply the dementia itself–changing brain waves and the person’s personality.

For the security of all, patient and caregiver alike, an Alzheimer’s dementia patient who becomes violent must be moved to a more secure living community, a setting that is safe and comfortable.

The patient has no idea what they’re doing and would be devastated if they understood the danger they had become to family and caregivers. But they can become dangerous. And a nursing home should be considered under those circumstances.

Later in Alzheimers stages they may need more medical treatment than the caregiver is able to provide.

Many Alzheimer’s patients yearn for “home,” the place of their youth that no longer exists. They’ll walk and walk and walk, if unprotected by open (unlocked) doors.

Much like a young child, they can be in grave danger of becoming lost or walking into traffic or accepting a ride from a dangerous passers-by. If you aren’t able to keep the patient in a well-protected, locked area, you may want to look for other living facilities.

It isn’t always a happy moment, but many of us simply aren’t able physically or emotionally to care for a loved one in our own home.

Whether it be financial, emotional, or simply in the best interest of our loved one– there is nothing wrong with searching for a safe and loving care-home to meet our loved one’s needs.

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