"Ants in his pants"

Maggie M · November 17

Has anyone experienced what i call "ants in his pants"? My DH can not sit for more than 10 minutes. He keeps going to the kitchen, opening the refrigerator, freezer, kitchen cabinets looking for something to eat. He just won't sit. It is so exhausting as I have to get up and see what he is up to? Any suggestions?

549jb · November 17

Yes I have! They are unable to focus on anything for very long so they get up and move around the house. When you ask what they are doing they can't answer because they don't know why or what they are doing. It's best to ignore because asking questions can irritate them. I've tried that to no avail. Let them wander about and try and stay focused on what you are doing or you will start to go a bit nuts.

annie51 · November 18

I know what you mean…my DH is similar. Whenever I’m not doing something with him, he walks out to the driveway, walks around to the back of the house, strolls through the house looking at each room, lately gets up looking for something to eat. He is much more restless now - like he wants to be doing something all the time. Sometimes I can put on one of his favorite movies on or something else on TV and he’ll sit still. But that’s the only solution I’ve come up with so far.

I’m thinking that when he’s looking for something to eat, it’s more just that he wants to “do something” vs really being hungry for something.

SDianeL · November 18

they go in the kitchen because they forget when they last ate and can no longer tell when they are hungry or full. Getting up and wandering is because they are anxious. They don’t understand what’s happening to them. I gave my husband simple tasks to do like fold clothes, set the table, dust. He liked to rearrange the pantry but I had to hide the snacks.

jsps139_ · November 18

My DH does this at bedtime. He opens and closes the dresser drawers many many times and takes everything out of his wallet and puts it in different places. I sleep in the other bedroom, but I can never fall asleep until he finally gets in bed and turns the lights out. I try to just let him organize and reorganize his stuff and look for things until he’s tired out (sometimes 30 min and sometimes 2 hours). He doesn’t seem anxious about it, just busy. I learned early on that asking “what are you doing” only aggravates him, so I just keep quiet.

WIGO23 · November 18

When my DH starts pacing at night, I have found that standing with him outside and stargazing calms him. It gives me a sense of what is still beautiful to me as well.

During the day if he is restless, I get him a podcast to listen to as he paces. Sometimes he will even settle in our sunroom and stop the pacing.

marier · November 18

My DH also would walk around the house and back yard non stop all day. Couple of things I did helped for awhile. In the backyard I placed certain items in the wagon. Items such as old but clean small car parts, toy cars, old small appliances (electric card removed) He would pull the wagon around and frequently stop sit and handle the items in the wagon. He would do this until he was exhausted.

In the bedroom in the night stands he liked to sit on the bed and open the nightstand drawers and look at.the different items I had place there. I placed toys, action figures, balls of yard, pictures of the kids. He would pull everything out and of course leave it all over the floor or bed.

Medication did help with some of the non stop walking. Now at stage 7 he sleeps most of the day, walks with assistance and sits in a chair listening to music.

PlentyQuiet · November 18

DH gets up at about 3 am and starts pacing nonstop until about 9 am. I stay in my room until 6 when it's time to feed the cat. He also has midday and evening bouts of restlessness, but nothing so bad as the morning.

The doors are locked and alarmed, important things put away, and the cat knows to stay clear of his feet. He's not hurting anything and all the meds/tactics we've tried don't stop it so we let him pace. He's just anxious and wanting to move. Lexapro, Seroquel, and gummies are given each day. I hate to think what an unmedicated day would be like

Biggles · November 19

my DH paces from about 2 or 3 o’clock every morning. It’s exhausting for me sometimes i manage to fitfully sleep but often I’m just lying there listening. He was a sailor and has never developed an interest in anything else doesn’t like gardening, painting, puzzles, used to like cars and car racing on tv along with golf and all other sports but his eye sight is not good and he can no longer follow the commentators. I heave a sigh and wonder what to do next.

Carl46 · November 19

DW gets antsy in the car if we go very far, like 25 miles to visit DS. She empties/rearranges her purse, the glove box, and the center console, putting her head between my eyes and the right outside mirror in doing so. The Elvis station on the satellite radio helps more than anything. Conversation would probably work but I am focused on keeping us alive in an environment in which one driver in ten is drunk and five in ten are distracted (including me, I guess, even though I'm not on the phone.)

Cindy9519 · November 19

This is so familiar. My DH paces all day and struggles to settle down at night. He is up multiple times a night needing to get some water, go to the bathroom, etc. Now he struggles to get in and out of bed which requires me to get up and help him. It seems as if this is a common symptom of the disease.

ImMaggieMae · November 19

Their world is falling apart and as the disease progresses they understand less and less. The antsy behavior seems to usually be agitation. My husband is in stage 6/7, and while medications are helpful, they can only do so much. It took years for me to really understand the importance of remaining as calm as possible because he definitely picks up on my moods. Distracting and redirecting really is helpful. I’ll often throw a soft stuffed dog toy, a pumpkin, to him and he will throw it back, a game of catch, usually while sitting in the family room. This often works for agitation when I can’t get him to focus on anything else. Playing music on Alexa and getting him up to dance, with help, is another distraction. Or sometimes just snapping his fingers or clapping along with the music, laughing and getting him to laugh.

There are times when he seems so afraid of whatever is going on in his head. Putting my arm around him and talking quietly, telling him he’s safe, that I will take care of him often helps. That said, I often just lose it and yell at him, trying to get him to cooperate with letting me get him in the shower, eating, etc. Taking care of him 24/7 day after day, year after year can be very frustrating. Having a caregiver here 3 days a week for 4 hours helps. I can at least get out to the store or my own medical appointments.

Dixie456 · November 19

https://alzconnected.org/discussion/comment/228804#Comment_228804

WOW! That's really helpful info about the wagon. My DH is 62 and has always been a guy that keeps busy with projects around the house. He can still do some, but others are too much of a challenge. That wagon trick is one I'm going to keep in the back of my mind for when I need it. THAT is exactly what I was hoping to find in this group. Helpful tips for an ACTIVE and physically capable 62 DH. Thank you and "keep those tips coming please!" And thank you!

Cheryl11 · November 19

My DH does what you describe. It's as if he's looking for something but not sure what that is. Sometimes I can see a pattern of what he does, ( check the mail, check the frig) given the stage he is in currently, so I just ignore it. Sometimes I will gently suggest he sit with me to watch TV or something. That works more often than not. I try to balance acceptance and ignoring it with knowing when to respond. There's also accepting my sadness because he's so different than 2 years ago. Sending good thoughts to you.

"Ants in his pants"

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