Do Time Changes Affect Alzheimer’s Patients?
With having to set our clocks back one hour to Standard Time in the US, I wondered how time changes affected Alzheimer’s patients. In the spring we set our clocks ahead to Daylight Savings Time, so I know caregivers may feel a lack of sleep. Do we get to sleep in that extra hour in the fall?
I didn’t see any real difference in Mother. Her inner clock always seemed at odds with mine. She simply got up when she awoke and wandered whether it was light or dark during the night. I did leave a nightlight on for her because I didn’t want her to bump into things. The she’d nap during the day if she was tired.
There does seem to be that “sundowners” syndrome in late afternoon with many Alzheimer’s patients when they seem to feel the need to wander and become more agitated. That’s when Mother wanted to feed her “imaginary” chickens. I realized that, back in the days when we had chickens on the farm where I grew up, we fed them and gathered eggs around 4 PM. Mother’s inner clock recognized this time of day.
Changes in routine do often have an affect on those with Alzheimer’s. So if time changes affected their schedule, you may see additional confusion.
I hope all caregivers did get an extra hour sleep this morning!
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POSTED IN: Alzheimer's/Care, Alzheimer's/Caregivers, Alzheimer's/General, Alzheimer's/Misc
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