Have any of you had your Mom tell you that she sees things that you know aren't there, like babies on the floor next to you or kittens?

Question

Have any of you had your Mom tell you that she sees things that you know aren't there, like babies on the floor next to you or kittens?

Follow

Share

Mom is 90 and has a great memory but she goes into these episodes of seeing things that aren't there. We have told her doctors and they gave her an anti depressant and anti psycodic but after a few days she was going bonkers and she knew it so she refused to take them. I just don't get where this is coming from. She just had a visit with her doctor this week and he agreed if the meds don't make her feel better then she doesn't have to take them. It's so strange to experience this and I don't really know how to respond. When it happened the first time I would explain to her that there wasn't anyone there but she said it's as clear as I am sitting there which kinda spooked me. But I know it's a medical thing not ghosts. I just wondered if anyone else had this happen?

New to Caregiving

This question has been closed for answers. Ask a New Question.

29 Answers

Most
Helpful Newest
First Oldest
First

This is very common at the end of life and can take many forms. Often it is deceased loved ones such as a parent or spouse. Don't tell the loved one they are not there. acknowledge what they are seeing and ask questions. "What color are the kittens" can you see the mama cat too?" This happens with or without dementia and can happen for some time before death so if other signs of serious decline are not present. On extremely rare ocassions a sensitive relative can also see these apparitions which I like to call spiritual visitors. Nothing to be alarmed about.

Helpful Answer (4)

Report

I seem to recall that these kinds of hallucinations are common in some specific kind of dementia, perhaps someone else here knows.

Her doctors started two new meds at once? In my view (I'm not a doctor ) that would be unwise. How would you know what drug was causing the problem?

Helpful Answer (3)

Report

My mom was hesitant to tell me her most recent hallucination because she said I would restrict her if I knew. I coaxed her to tell me and she said she went out for walk and it was dark and ended up in a lobby, but didn't know any of the people coming and going. She sat there all night and then they were coming in for breakfast. She realized she recognized it as the lobby of her apartment, but knew nobody. Next thing she knew, she was standing inside her apartment in the kitchen. I believe this was another dream/dementia episode, but I did worry that she is wandering. She did get locked out of her apartment and says she spent the night on the bench in the hallway. I did confirm with the maintenance guy she was locked out, but not for how long. She is refusing to go to assisted living, and her caregiver wrote me a note about hoping we wouldn't send her there. Oy. I am learning not to over react.

Helpful Answer (3)

Report

My Mother had "visions" for two days before she died. Girls dancing on the walls, children playing in her room and people walking through the windows. They weren't upsetting to her. She would tell us she knew we couldn't see them but they were real to her. No dementia.

Helpful Answer (2)

Report

My mom now sees an animal that she describes as both a cat & dog that barks and meows. It's black and has big paws. She wants it to come up on her bed and let her pet it. I think this is a combination of her vision degrading, existing memories of pets she had earlier in life, and her brain confusing the input it gets.

She also sees holes in the cieling up and to the left. Sometimes people come walking out of the hole. She sees a big hole in the floor about 5 feet out in front of her. Again, vision degrading.

She has had auditory and visual hallucinations in the past due to mixed up meds. She used to see dead relatives. They'd come "set a spell to visit" and it didn't upset her. I think it was messed up meds plus memories plus brain processing it all wrong.

There was also a squirrel that ran around on her fireplace mantel. He wasn't tame enough to get up on her lap, which she wanted.

I have a colleague whose mother hallucinates taking trips to foreign countries. She will say that she went to Scotland this morning and is glad to be home.
Hey, I hope I get to travel like that when my mind goes!

Helpful Answer (2)

Report

I'm torn about this. Modern-wise, my dad is senile and 'seeing' invisible people. Maybe he has UTI. However, my culture would say that he's seeing our ancient ancestors. I tend more towards modern thinking - senile + UTI. I'm a scaredy-cat. I cannot watch scary movies because it's too realistic to me. I do my best to think 'modernized.' However, if I ask oldest sis or nephew, they will tell me that the spirits in this house are bothering dad. I told sis that dad said that there's people standing around his bed trying to kill him. She said -No, they're standing around his bed waiting for him to die. Ugh!!! I really did Not need to know that. So, I guess it depends on what the elderly's beliefs were before dementia. I'm determined to view it as senility and UTI. My family will see it from our culture's point of view....

Helpful Answer (2)

Report

This is a common thing with Lewy's Body dementia. Animals and little people are the big ones. My dad has them all the time, particularly worse in evening. They call it sundowners. I have found for us; it's better to let him just have them and listen, respond best way you can. His wofe argues with him and tells him no hey aren't there and he gets VERY upset then won't talk. Where as I talk about them, answer what I can and then he's usally finished with it. Good luck!

Helpful Answer (2)

Report

Bookluvr - I guess the conversation becomes more about how to support dad through this and keep him from being scared of what he's seeing. Aaaaaand let's just check with the doc to make sure there isn't somethind medical going on at the same time. Things can bloom quickly in older people, and if he is having an infection, nobody wants it to get worse and have him end up in the hospital. No point challenging anybody's understanding of how this is working because it just doesn't matter all that much.

Is there someone in your culture who can come reassure your dad and interpret these visions for him, so he can be comforted? If these are also his beliefs, then this may help him. Not everybody needs to throw pills at things like Western medicine does.

Is there a ritual you can do in the house, with dad, that will comfort him or send the spirits away for a while? Or invite peaceful spirits in to shield dad?

I'm a dyed in the wool skeptic who can't watch scary movies either, but I do recognize that familiar ritual comforts people whether it's a prayer, last rites, smudging, chanting, or making an altar. Do what will comfort his soul, soothes his mind, and protects his physical body.

Helpful Answer (1)

Report

OMG, I don't know what it is about babies, but YES, my mom often has mind-looping worries about babies and often says she has seen them. She sometimes talks about having talked with her Grandmother and Jesus. I believe that these things are quite possible, that they may be able to tap into parts of the brain that most of us cannot. I do pray that comforting visits like these do happen in the midst of what is a frightening experience for those struck with Alz.

Helpful Answer (1)

Report

There are a lot of things that can cause these sort of hallucinations - with my dad, it was his kidney levels gettting too high just before he was due for dialysis. It had the same effect as a UTI or other very serious infection - he would start hallucinating and making odd phone calls - until we told the hospital and nursing home to stop giving him a phone to make those calls. (Sounds harsh and cruel, but he was just confusing himself more and more with the calls.) He was calling the hospital kitchen and ordering food to be delivered to his sister's house 60 miles away, calling us and asking us to come get him and bring him his clothes -saying he was sitting naked in city hall, etc.

Then came the visual hallucinations - little santa clauses dancing on the floor (don't step on them!), birds flying around up by the ceiling (and he would whistle bird calls at them, something he was always good at), hamsters running around inside the ceiling (don't you hear them?), or the always-entertaining food hallucinations - he would mime putting a spoon into his mouth, dipping it back towards his chest and back to his mouth, chewing and swallowing, as though he were eating. He swore he was eating a bowl of ham and beans, and boy was it good!

The only thing that stopped the hallucinations - and only temporarily, for about 24 hours - was dialysis. When he came to the end of his life, and required dialysis on a daily basis, the hallucinations were constant.

Have any of you had your Mom tell you that she sees things that you know aren't there, like babies on the floor next to you or kittens?

29 Answers

Recent Questions

Popular Questions

Related Questions