I want to start this post for any of us who are experiencing strange symptoms that cannot be understood. I am sure that I am not the only person wondering if the symptoms are "normal" or if it is indicative of something more serious. My dw has expressed that when she is lying in bed at night, prior to falling asleep, she hears a very loud boom noise in her head. It's happened 3-4 times so far, and she cannot describe it appropriately. (no the loud boom is not me baning my head against the wall). She also complains that her legs, thighs, and arms hurt a lot, and describes it as it hurts inside her legs or arms. I will try to google loud booms in the head, but I prefer to mention this here and see if anyone has any ideas.
Is your wife's diagnosis Alzheimer's Disease or is it another dementia, such as Frontal Lobe, Vascular, or Lewy Bodies? Sometimes they each have different symptoms. For example, hallucinations are common with Lewy Bodys. In any case, I would call the doctor who is treating her for the dementia and discuss it with him.
Frank, is she on a statin? My DH has been complaining of leg and arm pain also, either pain, hurting or tingling. Went for his checkup today- did blood work - Dr. mentioned the statin. Will call him tomorrow to see what he/we think about the statin. No experience with the booming sound.
I recall early on DH complained of lots of burning and leg/arm pains. at times he wouldnt even put a sheet on his legs= at the time he was on no statins but aricept. they eventually went away over a long period of off/on complaints. maybe the nerve endings are being sensitised by either medications or the disease itself. as far as boom factors, phranque we can make any number of educated guessing. like maximized blood flows (think doppler) within the brain / ear connections? or a possible small vein bursting? any number of issues could be the cause. maybe a migraine of sorts as well. you can always ask professional advice from her dr. they would have more knowledge i am sure. divvi
Phranque, does your wife have any problems with words in that describing the loud boom is not necessarily a sound but perhaps a pain? The first thing that comes to my mind is perhaps elevated blood pressure, the pain in her arms and legs and when your heart is pounding you sometimes experience that in your head which could be described as a boom, maybe? The thing I'm finding with my husband is that I can't listen to the exact words he is saying but I have to be a great detective to uncover what he needs or is trying to explain. Is she doing anything else differently than her usual, for instance walking more carefully, holding herself differently, talking less, more confused? Just a thought.
Well, no she is not taking any statins...she stopped 2 yrs ago, and she claims that the radiation that she had for breast cancer is the cause of her pains and her boom sound in her head..I do not agree, but I know better than to argue. Her Dr does not know the cause, and is puzzled by her pains....he is currently testing for rheumatoid arthritis...,(don't think so), and she has just the vanilla eoad..no lewy body, nor vascular, but she did have a bit of frontal palor in her last mri...Google did reveal one post from someone, but most were about boom boxes......I am clueless
Dear Clueless, according to my Neurologist who we love, as the brain deteriorates, the message to the muscles to work also deteriorates. This pain is from the muscles not working as well as they used to. Most dementia patients lose the ability to walk. The pain comes first. My dh has a lot of muscle pain in his thighs and calves. Some days he is ok with a cane, others a walker and we now have a wheelchair waiting for him. There is a wonderful product called BioFreeze. It is all natural and can be bought from most chiropractors or health food stores and is wonderful. It is very comforting to have applied to sore muscles.
I agree with the BioFreeze - that's what I use on my DH. We get it at the Rehab facility, much cheaper than drug stores - when you can find it in the drug stores.
I use biofreeze for my mom, but my dw will not even open the tube...she is hypo sensitive to any and all smells, textures, and will immediately go into an ashtma attack at the mere suggestion. Unfortunately, the biofreeze does have an eucalyptus smell, and she cannot tolerate that....I ordered some on line and ended up using it for my mom......she loves it...
My husband used to order it for me from Moore Medical Supply at a much cheaper price than I've seen anywhere. I've seen a small bottle with pump at the local spa for $45!!
SusanL, my DH used to complain of pain in his buttocks and thighs, all the while losing the ability to walk unaided. He now uses a walker at home and we use a transport chair when we go out. His neuro said the part of the brain that lets him move without conscious thought has failed. One can actually see DH stop and ponder what it is he's supposed to be doing and then the lightbulb will go off and he'll attempt another step. Such a difficult, laborious process for him just to get from point a to b.
My DH told me the other day that he has a cricket sound in his head all the time. I asked him how long it has been going on and he said 10 years. This is the first time he has told me but I didn't say anything(like, why did you wait so long to tell me) the only reason he told me is that I had researched hearing for dementia's and it mentioned a cricket noise that is constant. I hope you are able to find out the reason for the boom noise she hears.
Cricket sound is probably tinnitus and is a side effect of Aricept and other drugs. Not sure if boom sound is tinnitus as well...could be when she is lying still in bed she can hear her heart beat as a booming sound. Just a thought.
My DH has complained about having buzzing sounds in his ears. He said it goes from one ear to the next. Some days he doesn't have it so I never thought about it being a side effect of the Aricept or Namenda. The things we learn on this site is mind boggling!!!!
has anyones dh complained of headaches on one side of the head? My dh had a closed head injury about 20 years ago. At that point he complained of head pain on one side of his head. Now that he has eoad he is complaining of this sharp, stabbing pain again in his head. Does anyone know if it hurts when the brain is dying? I don't know anyother way to ask this question, so please forgive me if it is asked wrong. I am just concerned because there is no other medical explanation for the pain. We have had it tested in the past to no avail. Due to the brain damage from the injury my dh did have seizures tho. Over the past few nights I have noticed tremors when he is sleeping. Any advise?
My husband has frequent headaches in the front. I can look back and remember this happening for a number of years - was it a early symptom of the frontal lobe atrophy? Don't know.
As for your question - it is very possible. The brain itself I am told has no feelings - that is how they do surgery with the person awake. But, the disease can be affecting the nerves which can cause the pain.
My husband also has tremor while sleeping although I noticed a couple weeks ago in church that his forearm/hand had slight tremors. He was not aware of it. The other night he kicked me in the shin while he was sleeping. There have been nights that his arm flings out hitting me - I just make sure I sleep with my back towards him. We have his neuro appt Monday and I will bring this up. When I told his PCP he mentioned LBD which meant nothing to my hb but it did to me. After the neuropsych testing, the neuropsych dr mentioned FTD in the meeting and report. Now we see what the neurologist says.
My dh often complained of stomach pain. His stomach was checked and he had a colonoscopy both showed, nothing. the gastroenterologist said it was probably the alz , when tissue is dying there can be pain.
My husband has the sharp (ice pick) headaches, they were always on the side of his head or behind his ear. It's like they hit & then are gone. They are not as frequent as in the past though.
My DH has LBD. My DH has stiffness in both legs and has a very hard time getting up and down from the chair and from anything lower than a chair (the floor, for example). He's only 51 and has been very active all his life (in 2004, he was a commercial HVAC engineer and carried tools weighing 50 pounds most of the day). Now, his stiffness appears to be extending to his hips (his hips shift with his legs as he goes down the stairs - kinda like he has a board all the way up from his foot to his waist).
My DH also has overall water retention, but it seems like he is getting more swelling on one side or the other - especially in his ankle/foot area. He is gaining weight pretty fast. Less than year ago, he weighed 192 and now he weighs 220 and he's only 5' 7" tall. Also, his liver enzymes are starting to go up so they took him off all the cholesteral meds and other supplements (except for a daily vitamin).
His resting blood pressure and pulse suddenly dropped 2 months ago by 20 points (diastolic, systolic, and bpm). Nothing wrong with his heart, so they took him off Enalapril.
My DH is hearing voices at night and wakes up grabbing for the air, seeing something the room, and hearing someone say "What are you doing?" and similar things (critical voice). We haven't slept together for over a year (closing in on on 18-20 months) because he moved so much that I couldn't sleep and I am still working. I simply couldn't function. You all can understand how hard that can be. Another loss among the many losses.
No crickets ... that my DH has told me. Of course, I have to pry any information out of him and he's not always honest with me about things he sees and hears. He is afraid of what he sees and hears, so he tries not to see or hear them and denies having done so. I tried to explain that the hallucinations can be part of the LBD and not to spend his energy trying not to see things or hear things, to use that energy on doing things he wants to do. This seems to be helping. He is bowling on the Wii sometimes and even went for a walk again yesterday (even thought to wear a hat to protect his bald head from the sun).
When my DH first started having the hallucinations they scared him. I finally was able to convince him that they would not hurt him, that they were just here to visit with him. I told him to try to make friends with them. He gradually started to wave at them and sometimes talk to them and got completely over his fear. Now I often hear him talking and laughing with them.
Once again you wonderful caregivers show more insight from walking the walk than could ever be learned from reading a book. Your wisdom and compassion in dealing with hallucinations would fill chapters.
Deb...Aricept is not the only drug that causes tinnitus. What other meds is he on? Namenda would as well as would many other meds. Have tinnitus due to a perforated ear drum it can sound like ocean waves, crickets, music in background, buzzing sound. Wearing a hearing aid can help mitigate the sound.
My dh says he is never without a headache. The neurologist said it may just be that his head feels "different" and when he is trying to remember things, he perceives it as a headache. He loves to lay his head in my lap and have me rub his head. He says that helps.
Has anyone experienced their lo having a loss of hearing? My dh had been deaf in one ear since a young boy and in the last month or so, he seems to be loosing hearing in his left ear. I have to actually get very close to his ear and speak very loudly in order for him to hear me. He then responds to me. If I speak to him like I used to do, he doesn't respond. Any thoughts?
My DH has been diagnosed with bilateral hearing loss since his Dx with VaD. Even got a hearing aide, which he cannot put in or adjust himself. He has worn it, maybe 4-6 hours total., He's "saving it" in his dresser. I cannot have the living room tv on at night because "I can hear it. It's keeping me awake." The setting is low. Yet, he can hear softly spoken conversation a full room away, but not hear a question directed to him in the same room. I think he has some hearing problems plus a strong ability to selectively hear.
My DH wears hearing aides and when you talk to him you get "huh". I have decided that he can not process what he hears. I know that he does not enjoy TV anymore because it is just a bunch of noise so he says.
Caffeine can worsen tinnitus. It's also a symptom of aspirin overdose. It's extremely annoying.
Carosi, you might consider getting yourself "TV Ears." They are advertised on TV for $99, sold at Costco for $79 and right now, offered online only, at Costco for $59.99 which includes S&H. Best price I've seen by far. The receiver plugs into the audio out ports of your TV or cable/satellite box. It is essentially a very light-weight, wireless RF headphone with both volume and tone control in the headset. I find it works much better for me than a sound-enhancing speaker. While designed for the HOH, they would let you listen to TV without your DH hearing, as the volume control is independent of the TV volume. E-mail me for more info if you like.