Mom lives with my husband and I and she sleeps so much. Goes to bed at 9pm and not up until almost noon. I asked if she's feeling ok and say she does and when I tell her it's noon and she's just eating breakfast, she just shrugs her shoulder as to say, "whatever". Done with breakfast and starts reading the paper and falls a sleep again in her chair. Should I be concerned or what? I have to make doctor, nail and hair appointments in the afternoon so that I don't have to keep fighting her to get moving so we can be on time for the appts.
Also, my mother will get very fatigued when she suffers from a UTI.
What are your intentions for your mother in terms of her end-of-life care? Are you wanting aggressive care if she was to have a heart attack or aggressive treatment for a cancer? Are you wanting to rush her to this or that doctor for a diagnosis? There gets to a point where it's just overall difficult to transport the elderly so you may want to consider palliative care. You can still see specialist outside the home but a palliative care doctor can do all the primary care testing in the comfort of your mother's home, such as labwork for thyroid and UTI or ordering in-home x-rays. If you do consider palliative care, then try to find an agency that also offers hospice care so the transition is easy and the doctor is already aware of your mother as a patient through the palliative care side.
I'm not pushing or advocating you pursue palliative care. There's a time in the aging process where enough is enough for the patient and there's only so much that can be done when the patient has a poor quality life - which is different for every patient.
This is where I'm at with my mother. She's just comfort care. No aggressive treatment. I have the option to take her to an outside specialist or call 911 but I won't do this. She is homebound due to complications from vascular dementia and has a very poor quality of life. I could extend her life to treat her for this or that, but it's simply not fair to her. Since my father's expiration, she's just been going downhill and is existing but not living.
I do worry when she goes down for a nap and the caregiver can't get her up before she leaves at 5 pm
What would be atypical is one who doesn't sleep.
Meals are whenever they are awake :)
Don't over-stress yourself - if breakfast is at noon - like your mom says, "whatever"
Wait until she starts asking if she slept through a meal, lol. I finally figured it out and just make another breakfast or whatever meal he thinks he slept through.
Calories in are necessary for better health. I make sure to give all the vitamins and Probiotics for healthy gut - makes a huge difference! BTW, I only this week learned that Probiotics need refrigeration *slaps forehead* - the more normal the stool, the less apt to get butt boo-boo's.
Also, whenever there's a change of season, a sudden change in temperature, a dust storm (I also live in Arizona) or seasonal allergies occurs...my mother's body is sensitive to this and will develop cold and flu-like symptoms, the most obvious one is she sleeps more than usual. Many people think cold/flu only happens in the winter and early spring. These bugs are present all year long, actually.
Have you looked into palliative care so she's being seen by a medical professional once a month in the comfort of her home/your home? If not, then consider a consult. It wouldn't hurt to inquire your mother's eligibility for this type of care so you don't have to drive her to the doctor.
I'd make sure Mom is comfortable and pain-free and just leave her alone. See if you can find people who will come to your home to perform services for her. At this point, just sitting out in nice weather for a while may be all she wants or needs.
I tell her to sleep if she wants and enjoy it. It doesn't take much to wear her out.
I would be like "whatever" too, just let me sleep.
You mentioned, however, her attitude of "whatever. " Perhaps just make sure she is not depressed or bored. Both of these will make a person want to sleep excessively.