My mom goes to adult daycare mon-fri, she has sundowners and is very agitated at night, comes home and is up and down all night long. When I get her ready for bed sometimes she is sleeping all night and like last night she was up and down all night from 11pm - 6am. I got a little sleep but she kept moving from chair, to couches, bed and even tried to sleep in mine. I know the cold weather is really bothering her arthritis because its bothering me too. I have asked doctors for suggestions they are no help they just say to keep doing what im doing. Been to neurologist they have no clue either. My mom has a brain injury from a fall 70 years ago and its not a typical case of dementia. Another problem when she is restless she tears the house apart. I've already had caregiver here for the week so I will be spending the weekend putting house back together. I have talked to my caregiver counselor about this and she says I can't do anything different. My sister got to witness this behavior too which im glad when they came down for our christmas celebration.
At the senior center I was illuminated by someone there. "Oh, you got the Meloantonin Hangover!" No thanks. I like Bach Flower Rescue Remedy, or SleepyTime Tea by Celestial Seasonings, or Tension Tamer tea. What works the best is playing Steve Halpern on a CD, or make your own Pandora Radio "station" of Steve Halpern. It will play for an hour with a few annoying commercials but it is very relaxing, and then it turns off by itself if you don't touch it. Or you an set a station of music with one of the New Age stations on itunes. Or how about one of those white noise machines you can buy online? I have one that cost about $10.00
Good luck.
Carol
Passion Flower tablets or tea might help both of you sleep better also. Tazo makes a pretty and yummy one.
A confirming anecdote: my sister in law never set her heater above 65 degrees. When we visited, I asked if we could keep it warmer so my hands don't ache. She set it to 68 at night and 70 in the daytime. After we left, she turned it back down. She wondered why her hip had quit hurting while we were there but started up again after we left. One of her friends remembered her complaining about having to turn up the heat while we were there and told her to try turning up the heat again. That fixed it. Now she keeps her house warmer, although not as warm as my grandmother, who kept her apartment at 80 degrees!
My mother had two hip replacements and did well, but she was too frail for the surgery when she needed her knee done. The bone on bone pain in her knees was excruciating. I cringe when I think of the pain your mom must be in.
Pain relief won't "cure" your mom’s Sundowning, but she still should have pain relief. Because a person has dementia doesn't mean that pain relief isn't important.
Another doctor may be able to look at the situation from a different angle. If nothing changes, you'll know you did all that you could.
Take care,
Carol
Pain medications won't help her Sundowner's, but if she's more comfortable she may sleep better once she gets to sleep. You may need to see a doctor other than the neurologist for this.
I agree that it's terrific for your sister to see what you are coping with. I hope she can help you find some ways to get needed rest. ADC is wonderful, but you need someone to stay the night on a regular basis, as well, if your mom can't sleep.
Take care,
Carol