Community Chat

[Andrewsgrandma]

My father, who died from Alz. in January, was on Aricept for 6 or 7 years. Supposedly it slows the progression. Not sure it did anything positive for him. Otoh, it didn't seem to cause him any problems.

[LooPY]

My mom had Parkinson's dementia and took Aricept (among the cocktail of meds) for a number of years. It did improve her cognitive function for a long time. I don't recall there being any down side.

[JustJules]

On 8/2/2014 focksie said:

Lotus, just to clarify Alzheimer's and dementia... Most people use the term interchangeably but dementia can be caused by many things. Alzheimer's is a specific diagnosis under the umbrella of dementia.

Thank you for clarifying that, since you are correct, so many people use the term interchangeably, including doctors.

My father passed away in April, but he had been on Aricept for a little over a year. Originally his primary care physician prescribed it because he noticed some dementia symptoms in my dad, and originally thought it was attributed to Alzheimer's. After several months of follow-ups and testing, my dad's memory was not getting worse, in fact sometimes he tested better than the time before. However, I was doing my own research, and my father's symptoms indicated Parkinson's. Not sure why his physician didn't think of it sooner, but he referred us to a Neurologist and it didn't take him long to determine that sure enough, my dad had Parkinson's. He worked with my dad's primary care physician and both decided that in addition to the Parkinson's medication (which made a noticeable improvement) they would keep him on the Aricept as well for the dementia symptoms. I'm not sure how much the Aricept really helped my dad, since it wasn't really until he was on the Parkinson meds that I noticed a "leveling" out of his decline, but I'm sure it didn't hurt. My aunt (my dad's older sister) had been suffering from Alzheimer's for the last several years, and about 3 years ago they put her on Aricept. Unfortunately for her, I think the treatment was a bit too late, and while it did help some, her decline became too rapid. She strangely passed away only a few weeks before my dad. I wish they could find cures for these horrible diseases. It is so hard to watch a person disappear before your eyes. My aunt could recall things of her younger days, but ask her what she had for breakfast or lunch and she would struggle. Often conversations with her were completely random and made no sense, but you could tell her frustration that she knew what she wanted to relay and it just wasn't coming out. Thankfully my dad never reached that point. My heart goes out to anyone dealing with this disease, either personally or with family.

[goodstuff]

Alzheimer's is one type of dementia; there are many different types, all resulting in a decline in memory and mental/emotional functioning. Aricept is often given in an effort to moderate or slow down the development of dementia; sometimes it seems to help, sometimes not. My mother took it for several years before she died of Alzheimer's. Impossible to say if the medication made a significant difference. My BIL took it for a short time and immediately showed behavioral changes including agitation and aggression. He was taken off very quickly. Most drugs have side effects in some patients, and the elderly are often most sensitive to drug side effects or interactions. Look up Aricept online to read about possible side effects and concerns about this medication.

[Lotus]

Thanks everyone for your input, and I'm so sorry for those of you who have lost a loved one.

I've been noticing a change in my 85 year old mom over the past year.

LONG story short.....it took my sister (she came up from VA in Jan) and I almost 2 hours to convince her JUST to see her PMD. I had called the office prior to make the appt. and give him a heads up of what was going on. I knew if he told her to see a Neurologist she would listen to him before she would listen to us. Well he did tell her see one....telling her it was for his information and to provide a baseline as to her neurological health. He was quite convincing and she agreed.

Well, here it is 6 months later and I still can't get her to go. I will try to convince her to go back to the PMD and see if he will prescribe the Aricept for her.

She has short term memory issues (on and off), confusion (bills/finances) and she becomes easily agitated. I think the agitation is because she KNOWS she is having the other issues and it's very frustrating for her.

Wish me luck.

[shoekitty]

My dear friend's mom, had a long journey with her Mom. Her mom was diagnosed with Alzheimer's about 66 yrs of age. She was okay the first couple years, then they put her on Aricept for 5 years or so. I could be wrong but I seem to remember my friend saying 5 years was all it was good for? She said it really helped with some clarity and other symptoms, like better speech. After she was off she had the gradual progression until her death last year. I believe she had the disease for 14 years.

I remember the very first thing they noticed about her, was her cooking. She started to forget recipes, ingredients. She was a renown cook in the family. Then she was forgetting the order to add ingredients, and using wrong products. Like oil for water, putting the bowl with ingredients in oven. Just odd things they dismissed at first. Then it poor grooming (her Mom was fastidious) really bad nocturnal wandering, and isolation. Sad, just so sad

[JustJules]

On 8/3/2014 Lotus~ said:

Thanks everyone for your input, and I'm so sorry for those of you who have lost a loved one.

I've been noticing a change in my 85 year old mom over the past year.

LONG story short.....it took my sister (she came up from VA in Jan) and I almost 2 hours to convince her JUST to see her PMD. I had called the office prior to make the appt. and give him a heads up of what was going on. I knew if he told her to see a Neurologist she would listen to him before she would listen to us. Well he did tell her see one....telling her it was for his information and to provide a baseline as to her neurological health. He was quite convincing and she agreed.

Well, here it is 6 months later and I still can't get her to go. I will try to convince her to go back to the PMD and see if he will prescribe the Aricept for her.

She has short term memory issues (on and off), confusion (bills/finances) and she becomes easily agitated. I think the agitation is because she KNOWS she is having the other issues and it's very frustrating for her.

Wish me luck.

I do wish you luck and blessings. It is a difficult journey for both you, your family and especially your mom. I'm sure your mom is frightened of acknowledging the changes happening to her, and therefore putting off the doctor appointment, but truly it is really so important if you can encourage her to go. The symptoms you describe are how it begins, and it won't improve, although if they can get her on some medication it might slow the decline. I was fortunate in that my dad saw his sister suffering with Alzheimer's and when he started realizing he had some dementia he wanted to do whatever he could to slow the process. My dad was always one to be an avid reader, and had great memorization skills, and he drove up until he was almost 88. He passed just before his 89th birthday. One of the most difficult things for my dad, and he is the one that brought it up to me, I didn't have to confront him with it.... he admitted it was time he stopped driving. Several months before, he told me he no longer felt comfortable driving at night, so I would drive us in the evenings. However, he knew himself best, and the time came when he just said to me, that he no longer felt safe driving. That was hard for him because he had driven since a young teen and always took pride in being safe. I agreed with him, and when it came time to renew his driver's license, we just got him a state ID card instead. I'll never forget him joking with the lady at the DMV counter, and he said "Can I still drive people crazy?" and she laughed and told him he didn't need a license for that. He tried to put on a brave face but I know it bothered him, and when we agreed to sell his car, and a nice lady came and purchased it and drove it away... he mourned it like he had lost a part of him. He hated losing those freedoms and having to rely on me more and more.

Apologies for prattling on, but I guess my point is that I hope you can convince your mother that the sooner she gets a proper evaluation from a Neurologist, and most likely starts on Aricept or something similar, she might find herself having a bit more quality of life for a little longer.

Best wishes for you, and prayers for strength during such a difficult time.

[sage4]

My son was in a car accident at the age of 22 and suffered from short term memory loss. He was put on Aricept and after less than a year he decided not to take it anymore. Dont know for sure if it helped him or not, but he made the decision not to take it anymore.

[kdgn]

On 8/3/2014 Lotus~ said:

Thanks everyone for your input, and I'm so sorry for those of you who have lost a loved one.

I've been noticing a change in my 85 year old mom over the past year.

LONG story short.....it took my sister (she came up from VA in Jan) and I almost 2 hours to convince her JUST to see her PMD. I had called the office prior to make the appt. and give him a heads up of what was going on. I knew if he told her to see a Neurologist she would listen to him before she would listen to us. Well he did tell her see one....telling her it was for his information and to provide a baseline as to her neurological health. He was quite convincing and she agreed.

Well, here it is 6 months later and I still can't get her to go. I will try to convince her to go back to the PMD and see if he will prescribe the Aricept for her.

She has short term memory issues (on and off), confusion (bills/finances) and she becomes easily agitated. I think the agitation is because she KNOWS she is having the other issues and it's very frustrating for her.

Wish me luck.

I'm sorry, Lotus. That is how it usually is noticed: the handling of money, paying bills. And I would agree with you, the agitation is because she knows something is wrong and it's horribly frustrating for her. Perhaps you can tell her that there is medication that may help her?

A friend was thinking very seriously that her mom was heading towards dementia/Alzheimer's because of her forgetfulness. I asked a few questions and told her that at 89 it sounded like her mother was suffering more from "senioritis" and having a wee bit too much wine in the afternoon. She still balances her own checkbook, checks the bank statement against her check register, pays her bills on time; knows when it's garbage day, hairdresser day, shopping day. Mental confusion upon waking is common.

[goodstuff]

I am sorry you are seeing signs of dementia in your mother. I lost my dear mother to Alzheimer's last fall. Her symptoms started several years earlier, at just about your mother's age. We are currently dealing with DH's mom, in her nineties, with dementia and in a nursing home.

I'd definitely get your mom back to her doctor ASAP and have him urge her to see a neurologist. Just as important, if it hasn't already been done, be sure your mother's will and affairs are updated and that you (or another appropriate family member) has legal and medical power of attorney in place. A good attorney, especially one that specializes in elder-law, can be an invaluable help. If your mother is having trouble with bills and finances, someone needs to be involved in that process.......and if she is no longer competent to handle these matters, you or someone else should handle them for her. Confused, vulnerable old folks with checkbooks, credit cards, etc.and be scammed, make serious mistakes, and get into all kinds of trouble.

Sadly, if your mother is developing dementia, these problems will get worse and worse with time. You need to act quickly and decisively. If your mom is living alone, you may need to adjust her living situation -- either have someone visit her daily, move her into assisted living, hire a companion/sitter, or consider moving her in with a family member.