My 85yo mother’s dementia has progressed significantly but she can still make enough sense to fool you as long as you don’t talk long. After that she repeats the same questions asks off the wall questions forgets 2 minutes ago all the way to 30 plus years ago. She cries and begs to go to the dr and when we get there she smiles and says she’s fine. When they leave the room she will ask me where are we and why are we here? She has pulled some of her hair out and has developed a constant “tick” of picking and rubbing her face and head. I feel like the doctor thinks I’m exaggerating but it is so much worse than they know. What should I do?
After Covid leaves you can make ER visits until you get the testing done. Until then, not wise to do.
This is what my list was like:
1. Shows signs of sundowning
2. Shows signs of showtiming
3. repeats the same thing over and over.
Give ur list to the receptionist and ask her to give them to the doctor. This gives the Dr. a basis for his questions to her.
UTIs and other infections can alter behavior, demeanor or even make it seem like dementia has suddenly gone MACH II. Bloodwork can show evidence of non-UTI infection, then it's their job to figure out where the infection is.
I had to do that all the time with my husband, as like your mom, when his Dr would ask him how he was doing, he would always respond, fine. But thankfully his Dr knew otherwise, as I had sent him via the patient portal, what really was going on.
There are also places that will test a person for any signs of mental decline. You might want to look into that. Her Dr. should be able to recommend such a place, as they're usually affiliated with your local hospitals.(at least they are here where I live) Good luck.