Oct 9 & 10 2022

I worry more and more about Cheryl’s odd evening behaviors. Quite often afterwards she “wants to go home”. It breaks my heart that she doesn’t know who I am in the evening. It breaks my heart that I cannot find a solution to helping her get out of those behaviors.

I think I have my own anxieties about helping her at home. I did in the Spring when she seemed to be “off on some cloud” about something in the evening. The dementia experts will tell you to confirm and acknowledge the weirdness. That can be really really hard to do. They do not use the word weirdness that is my word for it. I mentioned to my sister-in-law that I am too much of a linear thinker to simply acknowledge and acquiesce this behavior. Maybe I have too much background anxiety about what is next?

The term used for this evening behavior is sundowning(er) syndrome. The Mayo Clinic has this to say. And the National Institute for Health offers these tips to combat it.

It is great that healthcare providers and institutions recognize it as a thing and give it a name. It still gives me anxiety.

Tonight which is pizza Tuesday, it seems to be easing but whether it is or is not will not be known until an hour from now.

Carpe Diem.

It is an hour or so later and it is looking good.

4:20 AM update – 🙂 – there was a problem with the computer that drove her awake. (There was not.) It took a bit of convincing and me doing a pseudo-visit to the computer, she settled back down to sleep.