I started a thread about 1 month ago asking some questions about this disease but now I am wondering if it is possible for it to advance as fast as it seems to be advancing. My so went from having maybe 1 or 2 minor episodes a week where she was disoriented to maybe 10 a day or more in less than a month. She has agreed to see a Dr. but that is a month away. If it keeps up at the rate it is going I don’t think I will be able to leave her alone a month from now.
The best I can describe it is very low retention of anything, movies, things we have done, things we have talked about etc. The scary part is that now she seems delusional more and more often. It usually only takes a minute for her to come back to her senses but the frequency is worrying me. She often thinks it is snowing outside ( So Cal here no snow) She thinks the cat we recently ost is in the house, she seems to hear voices or is mixing up her dreams with reality, yesterday she was trying to use the handle on the toaster to open a can of soup. I could go on and on.
Can drugs do this? Zoloff is the only drug that is relatively new to her, maybe the past year or so.
Make a list of **all **the drugs she is taking and how much, and show it to pharmacists and doctors and nurses. Drugs can interact with each other, build up in the system, etc. She also needs a full checkup; there are several things that can cause dementia that can be fixed.
She could also have Alzheimer’s. But there are other possibilities too. Honestly if she is having problems with delusions that often, that quickly, I’d insist on a doctor seeing her much sooner than a month from now.
Just a WAG. Is she perhaps forgetting that she took her Zoloft pill, and taking it multiple times a day? Perhaps this could account for the rapid deterioration.
Interesting thought, she does seem to be making her script last until it is due again. She has had an alcohol problem for many years and I am wodering if the alcohol mixed with the zoloff might be affecting her. The zoloff has done wonders for her drinking too much she has really cut back but still drinks. As far as I know she is only drinking about 1 litre of wine per day but it could be far more that I don’t know about.
I agree. Do not wait a month. She could be having mini-strokes. She could have a urinary infection. She could have a tumor. It’s going much faster than typical dementias. It might be something that needs prompt treatment.
Seconded. If it’s progressing this rapidly it’s not normal Alzheimer’s, from what I understand of that disease.
A friend’s mother, who had a history of alcoholism (probably self-medicating for bipolar), then a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, was living on her own and doing fine until she seemed to go downhill VERY suddenly (a matter of days). They believed she had taken too much of her lithium or whatever medication - due to high blood levels I believe - and hoped she would recover once her levels went down, but she never really came back to herself.
In hindsight I believe the theory was that she’d been mis-dosing herself possibly as an early sign of the mental deterioration, then really overdosed, and that basically pushed her over the edge from functional to requiring 24/7 nursing home care :(.
On rereading: I see you mentioning 1 liter of wine per day. A bottle is what, 20 ounces in the US, so just over a half a liter. Even that much a day is a bit much, and if she’s drinking twice that, it’s a substantial amount.
Call her doctor’s office and say this is an emergency and they need to see her NOW. Failing that, consider an emergency room visit :(.
Thirded, especially the UTI part. UTI’s can cause some really weird mental symptoms, particularly in older women, and particularly particularly in older women with dementia already. Pain/burning with urination doesn’t always happen. Fevers don’t always happen. If I see sudden decline in mental status, I’m on the phone to the doctor to see if I can get an order for a urinalysis for UTI, even without any other symptoms.
Also, Depression. Depression and Dementia are very difficult for the untrained to distinguish (and not so easy even for the trained, sometimes) and they are not mutually exclusive. Zoloft is commonly, but not exclusively, prescribed for Depression; it may be that it’s not working and the Depression is getting worse. Alcohol abuse is strongly correlated with Depression. Zoloft and alcohol do not play well together. Any or all of those would raise a red flag for me; the fact that there are mental changes, a Zoloft scrip and alcohol use raises a whole color guard.
Get her to the doctor, right away. No, this is NOT the speed at which Alzheimer’s usually progresses.
And, from drugs.com (bolding mine): Using sertraline together with ethanol can increase nervous system side effects such as dizziness, drowsiness, and difficulty concentrating. **Some people may also experience impairment in thinking and judgment. **You should avoid or limit the use of alcohol while being treated with sertraline. Do not use more than the recommended dose of sertraline, and avoid activities requiring mental alertness such as driving or operating hazardous machinery until you know how the medication affects you. It is important to tell your doctor about all other medications you use, including vitamins and herbs. Do not stop using any medication without first talking to your doctor.
I agree with the previous posters - this is a situation where you need a doctor now, not a month from now.
I am a registered Nurse, I’ve worked with Alzheimer’s and Related Dementia’s for years and years. As in, that’s my primary area of specialty. The advice in this thread is all solid. Search for my “Ask the” thread, and you may find some informaton in there. Or pm me. I will monitor this thread.
Early onset dementia is a “thing” and it is viscious. It goes fast. Get everything checked as soon as possible, and request… insist… for referrals to a geriatric psychiatrist. Soon.
She has a strong history of early onset on her fathers side. He was 48 when diagnosed, her grandfather was pretty well gone by age 60. She seems to take after them physicaly. She is 62. Her mothers was clear but the disease is also present on her side.
Also: I have quite a few relatives that have had dementia of various types. Grandparents, great aunts and uncles. Now my dad’s first cousin who is in his early 60s. So yes, I have sat on both sides of the conference room table discussing people with demential. One crappy day I did the “Primary Nurse” duties at a conference, then took my lunch and left early to go attend my Grandmother’s care conference across town. I was still in my nursing uniform; it confused a few people.