My grandma is too anxious to watch TV that she used to love. Is this because of Alzheimer's?

lindseyl - this may be a signal that she can't follow the story any more. This happens with dementias. The communication issues and just basic confusion makes regular conversation and understanding no longer possible. Some PWDs like my husband think the people on TV are real, and that whatever is happening there is in our house. So there was a time in mid stages when I had to carefully monitor what he heard and watched. No conflict, drama, guns or scary stuff or it triggered anxiety or delusions that it was really happening -- to us -- people breaking in, etc.

Your grandma may also be shadowing you. It sounds like she is trying to reassure herself that you are there. Yes, this also is typical of the dementias. She will need supervision more and more.

Did you see this article? Compassionate Care Strategies Using the 7 ‘A’s of Dementia - VHA Home HealthCare and this infographic:

My sister used to love General Hospital. She quit watching that fairly early on - probably because the plots and the relationships with all the characters are so convoluted that they can be overwhelming if you don't stay on top of the plot.

And needless to say I made sure that the Walking Dead disappeared from her TV choices. 😄 Easy to follow the plot (run, hide, get eaten anyway, repeat for 10 seasons), but really gory, and not something someone with Alzheimer's should be watching. I keep track of everything she watches now.

So yes, I agree with everyone that your grandmother's lack of interest may be because she can't track these shows anymore.

My mom always watched a lot of TV. We continued that tradition throughout our dementia journey, especially since she wasn’t very mobile. I was the activities director and made all the TV choices into late stage 5-6. The smart TV was my friend. I purchased almost all the streaming platforms. As HB said, the old tv shows were good while that lasted. Nothing too chaotic, like Gilligans island, which would stress her. Little house on the prairie, Andy Griffith worked if Barney wasn’t too active, I love Lucy was kinda chaotic. We did lots of animals, pets…vet shows( mom was an RN), AGT with animals stunts was good or cute little kids. Pet collective was a fave. Pit bulls and parolees, sometimes. You tube is also my friend, without ads, and you can find anything on YouTube. Ballet, musicals, concerts, oh my goodness, so much Lawrence Welk. I had to change it up from what mom enjoyed pre dementia, (except Lawrence Welk ) No more news AT ALL. Jeopardy and Wheel disappeared. She actually liked American Ninja Warrior. She liked competition and could even understand golf a little (while my husband was over). I tried to get my respite help to change it up but that didn’t always work. A lot of trial and error. And yes, I believe this change is due to dementia. Just gonna say, zombies would be too stressful for my mom.

Youre doing good work reaching out, your grandma is so fortunate to have you.

We did a lot of game shows. She could follow something about them. It also appeared she didn’t know Dean Martin (although I’m sure she was familiar with him prior) so when she caught on to him post dementia, she fell in love. I’m confident she thought he was crooning directly to her. If I tried to turn him off she’d get quite annoyed. If I put his variety show on instead of just looping songs from his variety shows, it seemed she’d get jealous of the many women hanging near him. Makes me smile thinking back.

my husband just started doing that. He's rearranging things many times each day, the pantry, the linen closet, like he's obsessed. He moves things then gets upset when I don't know where it is. I have to watch him like a hawk so I know where he moved stuff. whew!

Same me ! but in addition to just watching, I also like to play sports. Now Wall became interested in Pilates. There is more here. https://betterme.world/articles/wall-pilates-benefits/ Maybe you should recommend it to your husband?