I am at my wits end trying to find a suitable sleeping aid for Mum who has Parkinsons. She was diagnosed about 10 yrs ago..We have tried Axit and have just tried Clonezapam which was a disaster!
The Clonezapam made Mum quite delusional and aggressive. We have also tried Melatonin.
Mum just isn't able to settle and sleep for any long period of time.
I would be very appreciative if anyone has any advise on what else we might be able to try.
We are desperate😔
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AlanaS7
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You could try Lithium Orotate if she's agressive. It works very well for my mother. Only 125-250mg (5-10mg of Lithium Element) are enough. See other posts on Health Unlocked about this matter. I wish you all the best.
my HWP neuro prescribed melatonin (no more than 15 mg), xanax at night/as needed and controlled release C/L at night. That "cocktail" for a month helped. He has since stopped the xanax and is doing okay. We added that because his anxiety had spiked.
My Neuro suggested 8mg Ropinirole in the early evening to combat akathisia (internal restlessness), which he suspected of being the cause of sleeplessness - it has worked for me. PS I wasn’t aware of akathisia but when I read-up on it, it made sense. Good luck Alana.
Hello Wonky-Bride, Mum has always found it difficult to sit still. She is always wanting her legs moved , or her pillow moved etc etc. May I ask if you had similar day to day experiences. Many Thanks,Alana
Not sure if this can help anyone other than me but put an earbud in an ear on the side she isnt sleeping on and pump something slightly interesting in. I use BBC World Service.
It takes about three minutes before my mind is completely taken over by what is on and I am asleep.
The only things that prevent me from sleeping is when someone is nattering about something I am COMPLETELY uninterested in, such as who is killing who most recently in Ethiopia/Congo or how no one is doing anything about global warming.
Also, for some reason, it has to take your mind OFF whatever is keeping you up with nothing particularly important to me. SO music of whatever type doesn't help me to get to sleep at all.
Mannitol fixed my husband’s sleep, and then he could also tolerate melatonin which used to give him leg cramps. (He can no longer tolerate mannitol but the sleep benefit stuck!) his new neuro also recommends lithium orotate but we haven’t tried it yet.
Besides taking magnesium and melatonin supplements, I find that wearing blue-light blocker eyeglasses after 7 PM makes a difference in how well I sleep.
Exposure to artificial lights and device screens (including television) after sundown suppresses our natural melatonin, which is already on the decline because of age. Blue-light blockers help counteract that suppression to foster enhanced sleep. Hope that’s helpful.
Mannitol made all the difference to me. Pre diagnosis my sleep was appalling.
Laurie Mischley recommends 1:1 CBD:THC and she also recommends taking melatonin when you wake between 12 and 2 (rather than before going to bed) in order to mimic the body's natural surge at that time.
Hello,I am aware I am joining the party a bit late, but when I saw the title of your post, I thought I'd check with you if you found a solution and if your mother is sleeping better now.
I also suffered from terrible sleep problems, I know too well that not sleeping is hell.
So if the problem is not solved (and frankly, even if it seems to you she is sleeping) I would start by looking for a sleep specialist (if possible attached to a PD center, having experience with pwPD) and a place to get a sleep study (polysomnography). If you are in the UK, the movement disorders team of Prof Chaudhury in Kings College is very "sleep-sensitive".
Personally I take a coktail of medicines before going to bed, but I would recomment to be very cautious with starting and stopping sleep medicines. Confusions, delusions could be also be caused by the withdrawal of such drugs. I am a medical professional and I don't stop or start new sleep medicines on my own. I can reduce my dose if I feel I can do so, but that's it. And if I do, I don't make any further changes for months..
Many Thanks..We tried Mum on Tamezapam and it worked brilliantly. We did begin to notice that Mum was becoming a little aggressive and feared that she maybe getting a buildup of the Benzodiazepine in her system. We know from past experience that Benzos don't agree with Mum so we decided to wean her off them and try "Imovane" which doesn't contain any Benzodiazepine..Fingers Crossed!!
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