“Breathing on his own”

Klako

Three out of the last four days my dad has called to say once that he thought he was dying and twice that he has to “breathe on his own”. I think by saying breathing on his own that means he thinks he needs to concentrate on breathing or he won’t. He has been in AL for about 2.5 months now. When he says this I have had a nurse check vitals etc. and they are fine.

I believe this is some kind of anxiety but of course you never know. Has anyone had a LO who has acted similarly? 

Klako

I had put this out there and am really looking for some help. My dad has called almost every day complaining about his breathing or feeling like he is going to die. The AL sends someone to see him and all checks out ok. They believe it could be anxiety. Has anyone else experienced this with their LO? Advice?

M1

Kisko, I'm sorry you didn't get any responses first go around.  Yes, definitely could be anxiety.  Being short of breath will make you anxious if you weren't already.  Does the facility have a medical practice who makes house calls?  I would be sure someone has evaluated him--if they don't have a practice, take him to his own doc-- and if he truly does not have a medical reason for shortness of breath, ask them to recommend treatment for his anxiety.

harshedbuzz

Klako-

This does sound very like a manifestation of some sort of anxiety. 

Given that you dad is able to still use a phone, does he have a TV in his room? Or is he watching in a common area? Is this a high acuity AL for PWD or a hospitality-model AL?

The phrasing "breath on his own" is very scripted. I wonder if he's watching crime or medical dramas and conflating them into his own personal life experiences. In the evenings mom would watch the popular crime dramas as a guilty pleasure and the next day dad would report that he'd been kidnapped and/or murdered the night before. He also believed all catastrophic weather on TWC was right outside their door. I ended up putting parental controls on their main TV so that he couldn't access channels with triggering content. 

When we moved him into MC, we declined to put a TV in his room. The 5 TVs in the MCF were set to more innocuous programs- games shows, old movies, HGTV, Food Network and vintage sitcoms/dramas to avoid upsetting residents.

Dad's anxiety was magnified in the middle and late stages of dementia. We added a geripsych to his care team for medication. He took a cocktail of lower dose medications which calmed him down enough to respond to reassurance without sedation. He did still sometimes tell me he was going to die and smiled when I said "not on my watch". 

HB

Klako

He does have a TV and does like to watch NCIS, Law and Order etc. so thank you for that insight as I did not make that connection.

When he says he is breathing on his own he is not short of breath at all so that is why the anxiety route has come up. 

I appreciate the insight from both of you it seems like each day brings a new challenge.