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Sleeping 12 hours a night

DH was diagnosed two years ago, but has likely been impacted for 6 years. He was quite accomplished, so he was able to “cover” for many of symptoms as he declined. While ALZ runs in his family (grandfather, father, aunt, uncle, but not his brothers - yet) DH was able to make it to age 60+ without symptoms. For most of our marriage he only slept 5-6 hours a night. He would stay up late writing and get up early to go running. Now, at 67, he wants to go to bed right after dinner (7ish) and I get him up at 8 am to shower and dress. I asked Claude.AI if all Alzheimer’s patients sleep a lot, and Claude mentioned it was common for late- stage of the disease. Is that a common experience? I’m grateful he doesn’t wander at night. I’m always trying to figure out what “stage” he is in. As I’ve reviewed some of the descriptions he could fit several stages. We are lucky to be in the care of a good neurologist, and he has prescribed medication for anxiety and hallucinations (which have greatly decreased but not stopped entirely). While a year ago he fought me on not driving, this year I was able to have an updated evaluation and his license was revoked. DH was accepting of that and even let me sell the car (I encouraged him to think it was his idea). Last December we were able to travel to NYC with another couple; I’m just not sure he has more travel left in him. I don’t really have a specific question - just sharing in a safe space and open to comments and suggestions. Thanks everyone.

Comments

  • SusanB-dil
    SusanB-dil Member Posts: 722
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    Member

    Hi Kweisser - Yes, more sleep is very common, and from the posts here, it can happen at any stage. With MIL, it can come and go. She will sleep for quite a while, and then one morning just get up and get on with the day fairly early. (although that is getting more unusual as she declines - extra sleep is more the norm, now)

    It is normal to overlap stages, too. You can check the DBAT for what stage 'best fits' your DH, and usually go by the bad days, because it is by the lowest points that need to be addressed, such as for doc visits and caregiving.

    Sorry you are dealing with 'this'.

    DBAT: https://us.v-cdn.net/6037576/uploads/B0XGDF5TALMA/dbat-287-29-281-29.pdf

Commonly Used Abbreviations


DH = Dear Husband
DW= Dear Wife, Darling Wife
LO = Loved One
ES = Early Stage
EO = Early Onset
FTD = Frontotemporal Dementia
VD = Vascular Dementia
MC = Memory Care
AL = Assisted Living
POA = Power of Attorney
Read more