For the past year, Mom’s been exhibiting signs of dementia. I was extremely concerned. I pushed and pushed for my father to take her to a doctor. After months of pushing and offering my help, he took her. She has since seen two neurologists, done several brain scans, had blood drawn, and taken the MOCA test. Both neurologist have recommended a psychologist. She has “good” days where she’s perfectly normal, but most days she repeats herself and (I feel pretends) to forget grandchild's name, won’t cook, won’t clean, and does mannerisms someone would expect of an Alzheimer’s person.
My gut tells me she’s faking. It’s so incredibly infuriating. Are the neurologists saying, without actually saying, that she’s faking it? Am I crazy? Should I treat this as an actual disease in case something is really wrong?
Ps. She’s always exhibited “needy” tendencies and issues with control. This only exacerbates my suspicions.
I don’t know anything about her sleep patterns but people can act bizarre if they are sleep deprived. My oldest daughter had a regular schedule and we both slept.
When my youngest daughter was born she did not nap. She did not sleep well at night. I was so sleep deprived! She would wake up to breast feed but wouldn’t go back to sleep. It took forever to get her into a routine.
We cannot think clearly without proper rest. Sure, a sleepless night occasionally won’t matter much but if it becomes prolonged it alters our behavior. Does your mom get enough sleep?
My brother was a restless baby. My mom said that daddy would take turns getting up with him and one morning when she reached for a bowl out of the kitchen cabinets she found a bowl with two eggs cracked in it! Hahaha, sleep deprivation can cause wacky behavior!
Wishing all the best for you, your family, and especially for your mother - an empty nest takes some getting used to, your mother may be grieving and feeling quite lost and without purpose anymore. Hopefully, with a sensitive approach, you will be able to get your mother and father to understand that an evaluation is the first step toward understanding what is happening and why changes these changes have come about, so that they can get some meaningful help to recover some happiness and contentment.