I haven't posted in a while due to time constraints but have been keeping up with most of the message board entries. Sure hope someone here can relate to my latest concern---DH is having a lot of twitching and thrashing around during sleep in the last few weeks. One night, just after I awoke to his sudden arm jerking, he gave a pretty powerful kick that landed on my lower tush and caused me to scream his name. He awoke and said he was dreaming that a monster was chasing him. He was sorry that I was hurting and apologized but went back to sleep rather quickly. I lay there with tears in my eyes and my heart thudding, afraid to go back to sleep. A few nights later I awoke to both his hands on my upper back pushing me toward the edge of the bed. Again, a "bad dream." Last night when he began twitching and I heard his shallow rapid breathing, I began feeling anxious so got up and moved to the spare bedroom.
I used the search feature on this site and found a few references to clonazepam as well as a mention of aricept causing REM disturbances. DH is on Aricept (PM) and Namenda (AM and PM) as well as sertraline (AM). He saw a neurologist several times three years ago but was refusing to go back so is currently being cared for by our PCP. He was originally dx'd with MCI but seems to be pretty much stage 4 AZ now. Any ideas or suggestions would be truly appreciated. (This site has been such a wonderful lifeline for me, and I am so grateful to Joan for what she has provided for all of us---- as well as appreciative of all the contributors who reach out to share and help.)
susanhere, welcome back! I've missed you! My husband would kick out and twitch in his sleep, and wanted to sleep with me, so the doctor gave him Ambien. He slept soundly without moving for at least four hours, and sometimes longer. He seems to have passed to a new level now, and sleeps through the night without moving (or has for four nights!) so I'm hopeful that this stage will continue!
Some give their husbands other medications for this problem. Once you describe his symptoms and what he is doing to his doctor, he can better tell you what to try first.
Susanhere, you might want to check with doctor about changing his Aricept and Namenda to mornings only. My DH was having terrible dreams and nightmares until I switched them. Of course, we also reduced his dosage to 10 mg. Namenda in the a.m. and 5 mg. of Aricept in the a.m. It solved the problem - but then, again, everyone is different.
I have a friend with VaD who has been taking Aricept. He complained to his neuropsych about wild dreams and the neuropsych told him it was caused by Aricept.
My DH takes Aricept and Namenda at night and Namenda and Sertraline in the morning. He does sleep more than he used to but has never said anything about wild dreams. We sleep in separate bedrooms so I wouldn't know if he was kicking and jerking.
My husband also takes aricept and namenda in the morning and namenda at night. We sleep in the same bed and he rarely even moves while sleeping but does talk or mumble in his sleep. He seems to be able to speak better in his sleep than when he is awake.
Thanks so much, everbody, for your responses. Your comments do help me think through the problem more clearly. Mary, thanks also for the welcome. I hope the solution will be as simple as Ambien. Since DH has been on Aricept for over three years and Namenda for two, it seems that the sleep disturbances may be more related to AZ progression than to the AZ drugs. I will definitely check with the doctor next week. Thanks again for all the input. (DH is 69, been retired 3+ years. First began noticing problems 6 years ago after he had chemo and radiation for non-Hodgkins lymphoma.)