My dh is not able to sleep during the night. He is restless and moves just about every 5 to 10 seconds. He is either turning over, itching, jerking, general tossing and turning. Is there help for this other than us both being so exhausted we scream. He usually goes down stairs to the couch to sleep. We do not want to have to get separate beds but may have to...... any suggestions........most days we take a nap but that does not usually make a differnence in the sleep problem. During the day when he lays down he does not usually have the same issues that he has at night. If the only sollution is to turn on every light I can at night to make it seem like daytime I can do that. Other wise I am out of options.......HELP !!!!!!!!
Mammie, this is very common. It leads to our sleep deprivation if not taken care of. The problem is how. Each individual is different. Some say make them stay awake during the day.....if I could, I would. He dozes, but for short periods. At night he also dozes for short periods. The doctors have tried four different medications which had the reverse effect on him! I flushed them. Then, the doctor last week prescribed Ambien...well, let me tell you, that is a big no-no here now! First, he wet the bed two hours after going to bed; then he awoke every two hours as he usually does through the remainder of the night. By the next afternoon, you couldn't wake him up! He slept until bedtime and then was back to getting up every two hours, and having accidents each time! I am increasing his Mirapex to see if his restless leg syndrome is causing him pain and waking him up. Like you, I'm pulling my hair out! And tired of washing the sheets and towels and cleaning the floor. Thank goodness for the vinyl mattress cover!
It would be worse if I didn't sleep with him because I wouldn't know of the accidents, and he might slip and fall. It is a "no win" situation for me. As long as I wake up when he does, help him out of bed and to the bathroom and then back to bed and cover him up, I can be back asleep in two minutes for two hours. Hopefully the Ambien is out of his system. Another drug that doesn't work right on AD.
If your husband hasn't been tested for restless leg syndrome, you might ask the doctor to test him. He could be hurting and this is his body's way of reacting to it. I would definitely take him to the doctor though.
FOOTNOTE: IT IS NOW 2/2/2011, AND A MONTH AFTER I WROTE THE ABOVE COMMENTS, MY HUSBAND'S BODY ADJUSTED TO AMBIEN AND HE SLEPT AND SO DID I!!!!
I am now a big endorser of Ambien for getting them to sleep through the night. My husband's body went through an adjustment, but he has done well with the medication and we both sleep through the night.
Fortunately this is a problem that I have not faced...but...have planned for. Many months ago I received permission from Charlie's doctor to give him 3 mg of Melatonin before bedtime. Since I've heard that it may take as long as 3 weeks to kick in, I will start Melatonin at the first sign of trouble.
I've heard of people having excellent results...good results...temporary results...and no results. Melatonin is inexpensive...sold in supplement sections...is often given by parents of autistic children for this purpose. If your spouse is diabetic, be aware of the fact that Melatonin does tend to lower morning blood sugar levels.
skericheri I find melatonin works for me on as need basis. I combine it with magnesium which is a smooth muscle relaxant. My gyn thinks it is an excellent combination.
Melatonin would not work for Dave - I tried it along with other medications...no luck...and I thought Ambien wouldn't work at first, but his body adjusted and it works great. No more sleep deprivation....for me or him! I highly recommend it. I edited my earlier comment here, because it had been pointed out to me that I had said it was a bad esperience. I should have corrected it sooner....
Any thoughts on Tranzodone or Ambein as a sleep aid for the husband? Since being in the ALF they let him walk until he finally would sit to sleep... sometimes till 3-4:00 in the morning,which was fine for them, that was there job. However, I would like to change that habit. Suggestions would be welcome.
Kadee, Hospice gave Tranzodone for my husband, I only had to use it about 5 nights, not 5 nights in a row though, I just gave it to him after he would not fall asleep after a couple of hours at night. I did not let it build up in him as it does cause depression and other bad side effects. He no longer needs it but it did help and was a life saver at the time he needed it.
kadee if hes a pacer you need to find something to get him down long enough to rest. he will wear himself out and could fall from exhaustion. one of those may help -i would ask the dr which to use in your DH specific case.
I am calling the doctor tomorrow for suggestions. I had a terrible time trying to wake his this morning, finally around 11:30. And here it is 2:00 and he is back to sleep. He most certainly has his days and nights mixed.
Kadee, when I brought my husband home it took a while to get him back on track. I took him out a lot during the day, especially morning sun is important (so I heard) to get him back to a normal wake/sleep cycle. I took him out for walks, or just sat with him at the table. It took several weeks to get back so he would go to bed around 10 or 11 p.m. and wake up in the morning. Also check the meds, maybe they can be slowly reduced when he is home with you. My Dr. also prescribed 100 mg Neurontin (just recently) so he would stay asleep. It took a few weeks, but is has helped. Good Luck
I posted in your other thread, but I thought I would post here too. Sometimes meds just do not work. They didn't for Lynn. I remembered a post from Trisinger who also had a spouse who had trouble sleeping Here is the link http://thealzheimerspouse.com/vanillaforum/comments.php?DiscussionID=3530. There are a few other threads on not sleeping or sleeping too much. Lynn went from one extreme to the other......
Kadee--we went through the insomnia in January and my hb's neuro increased the Seroquel (has a side effect of drowsiness) and also prescribed Trazodone. Also, since he had been dozing a lot during the day, the aides and I tried to keep him awake by giving him lots of coffee (breakfast and lunch only). This combination worked and he is now sleeping 12 hrs/night, uninterrupted. We have cut back on the coffee this month because he has started pacing during the day, which also keeps him awake during those hours. Jane--I thought Trazodone was an anti depressant, but you say it causes depression?
MarilyninMD, I will try the coffee, he also loves Mountain Dew which I think has quite a bit of caffeine..but only at breakfast & lunch. Also, calling the doctor to ask about the Trazodone. His pacing started at around 9:00, he will not lie in his bed at all. However, he did sit in his recliner, but took it up and down repetitively till around 3:00. He seems he just can not relax. I am wondering if the Klonopin he takes at 5:00 is causing this.
Kadee--I forgot to say that his neuro said Ambien might have a "hangover" effect and that he might be groggy during the day, which would be counterproductive when we are trying to keep him awake during daylight hours. The Trazodone doesn't seem to do that.
The doctor did prescribe Trazodone...1 tablet at bedtime or 2 if the 1 doesn't help. I did give him coffee this morning & will try the Mountain Dew. I am going to try my best to keep him awake. I had a terrible time waking him again this morning. At least no behavior problems so far. He seems more alert & happy.
Don't forget we are also dealing with the switch to Daylight Savings Time now, which I think is even harder for our spouses with all they have going on!
marilyninMD, Yes, the Trazodone can cause depression. Look up the side effects. My husband had a little tear drop one day while on the Trazodone and a very sad looking face. The Doctor said the drug would not leave a hang over effect and I guess I would say that was true in our case but that sad little tear broke my heart. The nights I did use it were like a miracle as far as the sleep and I would use it again if I had to.
I gave my husband the Trazodone about 9:30, he finally fell asleep a few minutes ago at 11:30. I wonder if it will work tonight to keep him asleep. He still will not even think of getting into bed. 11:45 That didn't last long...he was back up pacing until around 1:00. But, I guess on the positive side, it wasn't until 4:00 in the morning. Marilyn or Anyone Else, whose spouse takes Trazodone at night, how many mg's do they take?
Kadee--He is on 50 mg, but one pill didn't do it. I was told the same thing as you, use 2 if needed (100mg) and that does the trick! That plus the Seroquel give him 12 hrs sleep. I didn't mention previously that for a year before the Trazodone, I used Melatonin and it did give us an extra year's sleep. But in time, it was ineffective. I hate giving all these meds, but if he doesn't sleep at night I will have to place him. It is my line in the sand.
Now I don't know what to do. My husband took a long nap today, so I thought he would stay awake for awhile this evening. About 6:30 he kept falling asleep. I got him up walked him around, but just couldn't keep him from sleeping. Finally, I gave up & took him to his chair...he will not lay in the bed. I gave him the Trazodone, he stayed there for about 15 minutes & now is up pacing wide awake. Nothing seems to stop the pacing.
Well, I have read everything I can find about Sundowning. I am willing to try anything. I have all the lights in the house on. He still sleeps great in the day, however, night is another story. The doctor prescribed Tranzodone, at bedtime, however, he doesn't have a bedtime so I have been giving it to him around 9:00. He paces from about 6:00 in the evening stopping for short naps, then like a jack rabbit is up again. He never really settles down even at night when he is in his recliner....seems like he can't relax. This is not a problem through the day. I have tried music, leaving the T.V. on at night nothing seems to help. What do you think about leaving the overhead light on if he does go to sleep? Wonder if Ativan would him him settle down? I just feel so bad for him to be so anxious all night long. One good thing, he has no behavior problems.
I had forgotten that I posted this last year. That was about 7 months after my dh was diagnosed. I didn't realize just how much he has changed until I read that post. Kadee you hit the nail on the head when describing what is going on with my dh. No problem during the day, at night another story. He dozes off at night, after about 10-20 minutes he is sitting on the side of the bed for about 2 good minutes. I wake up from the half sleep I am in and ask what he needs. I ask him because he can't communicate what he needs or wants. To make a long story short, this goes on until I do something. It is now happening every night. He wakes up thinking he needs to go to the bathroom. Most times it is a dry run. Last night I told him he was not going to the bathroom one time. He had already been 3 times between 10:20 pm and 11:15 pm. Only tinkling on one of those trips. Once I told him he was not getting up to go, he just looked at me and laid back down. No accidents...... Thank God..... I know we simply lucked out... Thru out the night he did make one hundred and one trips many with no results.... The only thing I can find that works so far is 3 ibuprophen. When we go to the dr. in May I will put this issue first on our list. Thanks everyone for suggestions.
Mammie, I don't know how far along in the disease your husband is, but, a year ago my husband was doing the same as your husband at night, regarding bathroom trips. I finally took him to the Urologist, he didn't have prostate problems, however, the doctor did prescribe medication, he no longer takes the medication, but it helped at the time.