My wife has dementia and spends most of her day using a walker to go back and forth between two bathrooms. She is not constipated, does not have diarrhea, nor does she have a UTI. Otherwise, she is watching television or taking a nap. I must admit the exercise is helping keep her from becoming bedfast.
and 8 trips to the restroom each hour she's awake..
I suggest you read this 33 of booklet online about managing dementia and what to expect with an elder who's been diagnosed with it.
Understanding the Dementia Experience, by Jennifer Ghent-Fuller
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/210580
Jennifer is a nurse who worked for many years as an educator and counsellor for people with dementia and their families, as well as others in caring roles. She addresses the emotional and grief issues in the contexts in which they arise for families living with dementia. The reviews for her books are phenomenal b/c they are written in plain English & very easy to read/understand. Her writings have been VERY helpful for me.
The full copy of her book is available here:
https://www.amazon.com/Thoughtful-Dementia-Care-Understanding-Experience/dp/B09WN439CC/ref=sr_1_2?crid=2E7WWE9X5UFXR&keywords=jennifer+ghent+fuller+books&qid=1657468364&sprefix=jennifer+ghent%2Caps%2C631&sr=8-2
As her condition progressively declines, you need to look into hiring in home care or placing her in Memory Care Assisted Living. Oftentimes, dementia and AD behaviors become too intense to deal with alone at home. Don't become a statistic where you die from stress before she does! Recognize you need help and hire some.
Good luck.
As long as she’s able to get around and to use the toilet properly, be thankful and try not to over think it or correct her. It won’t be worth it.
It is possible that she just wants to make sure that she does not have to "go". And when she does go is she able to empty her bladder completely? It is possible that there is still a bit of an urge to go.
And how often are the trips to the bathroom?
If it is every 2 hours or so I would not worry about it at all.
If it is every 15 minutes I would suspect that this is just a "dementia quirk". My Husband would get obsessed about shaving and he was in the bathroom shaving 4 or 5 times a day. And that was after his shave, shower in the morning.
He did the same thing with brushing his teeth for a while.
As with a lot of things someone with dementia does...that phase passed and he would pick up another "quirk"
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