Used to fall a lot, now doesn't?

CatsWithHandsAreTrouble

Just something that I've been thinking about for a while now about mom (73, early onset Alzheimer's, for those that don't know). 

She used to fall a lot, like once every three months it seemed. Falling out of bed, falling trying to get in bed, falling down the stairs trying to go up or down, falling from sudden loss of balance, falling after standing still and moving again. None of the falls were overly major (ie needing urgent care) though one did get her a couple of bruises and cuts.  That was the last major fall she had and that was about 14months ago.

I don't think she's fallen any point earlier this year save for once when she forgot she was at the steps to the house and tripped over the last one in her hurry to get inside (I took my eyes off of her for literally 5seconds to open the door and she's on the ground).

Since her last big fall, we've lowered my parents' bed, got her on a more strict bedtime with a bedtime routine, watching her more closely, and trying to limit her going down the one stairs that she fell down last (we're in a split level home so there's lots of stairs). We also have tape on the edges of the steps/stairs so they don't visually blend in together.

I'm just curious if what we've been doing is what caused her to stop falling so much or if something else is contributing to it. I think I recall others saying that there's some forms of dementia that affects balance. I don't think there were any med changes that would contribute to it, the ones she's on now and then were the same she had been on since the diagnosis in/around 2020.

I had a hard time looking through the past posts for similar experiences since it mostly had hits for falling in general and not "suddenly" stop falling. The neurologist who first saw mom was pretty confident that she has Alzheimer's and I know that some PWD have more than one type. So I guess I'm just trying to figure out if her falling or lack thereof is related to a second type or if it's a result of us giving her a better level of care? 

Curious if anyone else has experienced something similar.

Arrowhead

I’m sure that the measures that you took did help. 

One of the traits of this disease is that symptoms come and go. My wife has gone between, “I don’t know you so don’t come near me” to “Hello sailor, looking for a good time?” Right now she’s in between. It could be that your mother has stabilized for now and that it could change again. I’d say to enjoy it for now and be watchful in case it returns.

Iris L.

Falls are an issue for all older adults, due to less muscle mass, cardiovascular pathology, medication side effects, and other causes.  Steps taken to reduce falls seem to be working.  Keep it up!

On a personal note, I used to trip and fall a few times.  I took steps to reduce falls.  The other day I stepped on one of my cats because he ran beneath my foot while I was in the process of a step, I couldn't catch myself and landed on him.  Fortunately he is so flexible that he didn't get hurt, and neither did I, even though I am not that flexible.  Often members post about getting a pet for their LO.  I love animals, but I am well aware that animals in the home are a huge TRIP HAZARD for older adults, with or without dementia.

Iris

Oregano

CatsWithHandsAreTrouble, your post might be touching upon something I've been looking into lately: inclined sleeping. Can you check her bed and see if the head is higher than the foot? It's possible that the angle changed when you lowered it.

There are several benefits to inclined sleeping, the greatest of which is that it relieves cranial pressure inside the skull:

https://www.bulletproof.com/sleep/sleep-hacks/inclined-bed-therapy-sleep

"When you sleep, cerebrospinal fluid (the fluid that surrounds and runs through your brain) works with special brain cells called glia to flush out debris that has built up in your brain during the day — basically, it’s spring cleaning for your brain. The process is called glymphatic drainage, and it’s one of the most important aspects of sleep.[2]

Inclined sleeping helps improve glymphatic drainage. Lying horizontally for 7-8 hours a night distributes cerebrospinal fluid more or less evenly across your brain, because you’re perfectly flat. That even distribution of fluid increases intracranial pressure (pressure inside your skull), decreasing your brain’s ability to clear cellular waste and recover while you sleep. Raising your bed height a few inches tips gravity in your favor, restoring your body’s natural orientation and promoting glymphatic drainage.

In addition to causing the brain to swell, sleeping horizontally also puts sustained pressure on the eyes, ears, face, sinuses, and even the gums. The entire head becomes overburdened due to the increased pressure in our skull."

CatsWithHandsAreTrouble

Thank you Arrowhead and Iris! Your input both is very reassuring to me. We'll keep a lookout for anything that might indicate her balance is going out of wack again and make sure to try to herd our cat away from under her feet. 

Sorry Oregano, this is my first interaction with you and I'm not inclined in doing your homework. Mom sleeps with two pillows propping her up and a neck pillow but she's been sleeping like that for years.

Oregano

I'm not sure where this negativity is coming from. It's awesome that you're seeing an improvement with your mother, and I'm trying to help you figure out why. That's the purpose of your post, isn't it? And if something works for her, it'll probably help a lot of other people, too.

CatsWithHandsAreTrouble

My apologies if I came off as cross with you. I was setting boundaries and expectations.