Does he think I’m his Mom?

KathyF1

My DH is stage 6. He’s at home with me. For awhile now he’s been calling my Mom quite often. Do you think he really thinks I’m his Mom?

BPS

I don't know I have not had that happen but I have heard that a PWD forgets how old they are and thinks of things as it was years ago. Maybe he doesn't realize his age and thinks of himself as much younger and seeing someone that is in his view that is older than him that he loves must be his mom sometimes and other times he might know you as his wife. Either way he looks to you as someone he loves. But again I don't have any experience in that so I have no idea.

Bunny whisperer

KathyF1

My DH calls me "mom" all the time. He is in the 7th stage. I wondered if its because as a caregiver we care for them like their moms did

sandwichone123

My spouse lost or mislaid the names of relationships pretty early, so he would call people by different relationships, even though I think he knew who he meant and "saw" the relationship correctly. OTOH, often people with dementia think of themselves as much younger than they are, so they see the generations of their families differently.

SDianeL

It's not uncommon for individuals with dementia to misidentify their spouse as their mother, or another family member, due to memory and cognitive changes. This behavior stems from the way dementia affects memory and the sense of time and place.  My DH thought my daughter was me. Important not to argue or correct them. Say something like “it sounds like you’re thinking about your Mom, is there anything I can help you with?”

ARIL

My father asks about relatives all the time who were born around 1900 or even before, wanting to go visit them. I think he thinks they are in their thirties or forties. He was married twice and gets the two names mixed up, and sometimes he uses my mom’s first and middle names as if they were two people. I think he experiences mostly consistent, true emotions, but he gets the labels wrong: names, relationship words. And time is very flexible. I am almost used to this. Almost!

My stepmom WD often mistook me for other people: once the wife of her first husband’s brother, once a friend of hers from high school. I think she imagined these people at the age I was at the time.

The brain really tries to make meaning…