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What can we give my mother to help her sleep?

A fellow caregiver asked...

My wife and I take care of my mother, who is in the final stage of Alzheimer's. We have overcome most of the problems we have come too except now she does not sleep at all. We are trying to find out if there are any medications anyone has tried that does not drug the person to a point that they are like a walking zombie.

We feed my mom. She wears pull-ups now. We dress her and give her baths. She does get out of bed yet at times and, when God blesses, us we get more than one word responses. (But this is not often.) Even with all the support and medical help we have, the sleep and medication has now become a problem we can not figure out as of 10/28/2010. I am confident we will overcome this as we have overcome all the other things we have had to face.

I leave with God Bless anyone who loves someone so much to dedicate their life to caring for someone with Alzheimer's as it is truly a labor of LOVE!!!

Expert Answer

Ladislav Volicer, M.D., Ph.D., is recognized as an international expert on advanced dementia care. He is a courtesy full professor at the School of Aging Studies, University of South Florida, Tampa, and visiting professor at the Third Medical Faculty, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic. Twenty-five years ago, he established one of the first dementia special care units.

Before you resort to a medication you might want to try non-pharmacological strategies. It may help if you could keep your mother awake during the day by providing some activity for her. I do not know if she would be still able to sort cards or tokens, or watch an old movie or TV program. If that does not help you might want to try trazodone. It is a weak antidepressant that also promotes sleep.