Lack of energy

Joerallen

My wife is 83 with Alzheimer's and recently she has no energy at all and wants to sleep all the time. Is there something I can do. Joe

dcare45

Glad you found this site; sorry you have a reason to be here.

You may want to check for a UTI. We just got through one and the only symptom was lots of sleeping and napping.

White Crane

Hi, Joe, and welcome to the forum. Depending on what stage your DW is in, sleeping a lot may be normal progression. Have you contacted her PCP or neurologist about this new behavior? She might have a UTI. UTI's are sometimes silent in people with dementia. Please call her doctor.

jgreen

Hi, @Joerallen

Both @dcare45 and @White Crane have given you great advice. Any kind of infection, dehydration, pain, etc can cause sudden change in LO’s behavior. There are test strips you can buy over the counter that will test for urinary tract infection (UTI). They are not super accurate, but the results you see might something you can tell the doctor when you call.

Please come back and let us know how you and DW are doing. We care,

Maru

In addition to the other advice given, you might consider depression, which is not uncommon in dementia.

Victoriaredux

It's normal as the disease moves along to sleep a lot , must be tiring for their brains to strain to make whatever connections are left.

What can you do, take this time to say things you never got to say - if you remember a great trip, a meal , first this or that — tell her the story in simple terms. If you never got to make a trip to where ever - watch a youtube about it . Do a take out from a favorite restaurant even if all she can do is taste the sauce on a bland base if its safe .

Make your memories from today as you can .

Chance Rider

My husband, mid stage 5, also sleeps a lot more now. I talked with his (great) pcp and told her I no longer try to limit his napping. I figure his brain is tired and needs to rest. His doctor said it’s due to the progression of his disease and just to let him sleep. No uti or other potential causes in his case just this horrible disease.

tboard

In later stages of Alzhiemer’s sleeping is common. My DH can sleep for a whole day.