My Dad is 71 and has PSP. He was initially diagnosed with PD in his mid-50s, but later, it was rediagnosed as PSP. He also has bi-polar too.
He has been in a nursing home for the last 1.5 years as my Mum could no longer care for him at home.
He has some confusion and memory loss but, for the last week or so, has been quite delusional. He thinks my Mum has been having an affair with a maintenance man called Michael, who works in the nursing home, and there are "bouncers" on the door that won't let my Dad go anywhere. He is angry and irritated. To be clear, this story is not true at all.
Has anyone else experienced something like this, and how do you deal with it? How do you talk to someone without irritating him further?
It's so difficult to hear this coming from him, even though I know it's not true.
Thanks all,
Lorna
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Lornamullins
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Dear Lorna, I'm sorry to hear this but yes unfortunately confusion and imagined stories can be a part of the disease in my experience.The first thing to ask is if your poor Dad is currently suffering from an infection, could there be a UTI causing issues here. If there is no infection, it is important to discuss what is happening with medics and ask if medication is appropriate to try to regulate the behaviour.
Being angry and irrated by irrational and vocalised thoughts will serve no positive outcome for the patient, family or carers and the medics can help address it.
I saw it as another piece of dignity this awful disease takes from the patients. Its really sad to see or experience this so please please take care of yourself.
Some patients accuse their partner of flirting with their carers and that no one listens to them.
“Leosta” point out: “It is heartbreaking and frustrating and distressing and mentally destroying. I've tried everything; every possible reasoning for how that could not possibly be happening. He tells me I'm lying. So now I say " oh not again, you know how stupid that is " and walk away. For me, not for him. I have it on good authority that it is frontal temporal dementia which can come with PSP unfortunately. Nothing you can do”
“daddyt” suggest: An appointment with a neuropsychiatrist is definitely to be considered.
Hallucinations.
Joluu wrote: “Episodes of confusion and hallucinations have been triggered by infections so my first thoughts are to get him checked by a doctor to make sure there's no infection.”
KatieHelles wrote: “My step-dad has PSP and does have the odd period of confusion thinking that he needs to go to work or play rugby (with some determination sometimes!). This can be part of the condition and passes in time, it can also for my step dad be more likely to happen when he’s tired and overdone things or unwell with a virus/infection so again always good to try and check whether this is happening in the back ground. The confusion usually passes within a few days in our case. General advice would be to go along with the confusion where possible we would call a friend sometimes and they would reassure my step dad that rugby was cancelled today so he didn’t need to get ready. This reduced his agitation a lot as telling him he doesn’t play anymore just increased his distress unnecessarily. Also having lots of familiar prompts around might help him in the home photos objects etc.”
45purple wrote: “Hopefully when settled he will not be as confused just have to remember at his age it’s a big change for him being moved and he won’t recognize the surroundings.”
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