Lewy Body Dementia: Mom talks constantly even when sleeping

Hire a night aide so dad can get sleep in another room. Her condition is challenging his well-being.

My husband has Lewy Body dementia and will talk in his sleep one or two nights a week, that is loud enough to wake me up. It may be more often and I just sleep through it? He is a pretty loud snorer and I have learned to ignore that so I might not be hearing it all the time. Occasionally he will be “dream shouting” and moving his feet and legs like he is running. If I wake him he doesn’t remember a dream or anything disturbing so I usually just let him sleep through it now. He can still manage on his own at night if he needs to use the toilet, but he has to turn on the lights or he gets disoriented ) found him looking for the toilet in the closet one night). The light is VERY disruptive to my sleep and just when I thought would lose my mind from disrupted sleep, I decided to try a sleep mask. I LOVE this thing! He can turn on all the light he wants and it’s a complete blackout for me still. It’s the MZOO on Amazon and it’s very comfortable and works great. I wish I had used it years ago! I don’t know if that will help your Dad’s situation since I don’t know how much help your Mom needs. If she is talking constantly and loudly ear plugs for Dad might help, but could be a problem if he needs to listen if she tries to get up at night to toilet. If she really needs physical assistance to toilet, it does sound like a night shift assistant might be needed as someone else suggested. Dad needs his rest too!

There are some drus that may help with that.I have had REM sleep issues at least since I was in my twenties. I have it longer - but I got married when I was 22 so had somebody to wake me up ffom the bad ones. Mostly they're funny. I once sat up sudddenly, pulled my husband's pillow out from under his head, and threw it across the bedroom. He aske me to get it for him. I did and then wen't back to bed.. Other times when I dreamed that somone was trying to steal my baby, he grabbed me by myarm to wake me up, and I incorporated that into my dream, thinking it was the one trying to seteal my baby and tried to bite his hand. But he saved himself and went back to sleep

Clonazepam has helped me with REM behavioral sleep disorder. Had it for at least 10 years and diagnosed with LBD 2 years ago.

@dedhambeth, I hope you saw the helpful suggestions and support from fellow members. Have you talked to your mom's doctor about helping her and your dad to get better sleep?

@mm180 Using a sleeping mask is very important if your spouse turns on a light at night. We sleep in separate rooms (we both snore) but my 81 yr old husband comes through the bedroom into the master bathroom at night and carries a flashlight. The mask helps me avoid waking up when he goes to the restroom at night using the flashlight. Another thing that helps me sleep is having a U-Tube video running that plays the sound of waves crashing on a beach all night long! I turn it down really low and use it as white noise. If he thinks I might be awake he always wants to tell me details of his dreams or the TV show he watches often into the wee hours of the morning. The mask also tells him "leave me alone, I'm asleep"!

@mjensen24 My 81 yr old husband has severe neuropathy in his feet and takes several different drugs for the pain. When I told him it was not supposed to be used with another drug he takes he decided to go off it cold turkey without telling me. What followed lent true meaning to "climbing the walls".
I took him to the ER and he spent almost a week in the hospital and still, 10 years later, can't remember all the details of that unfortunate event.
On occasion, I like the way it helps me sleep better too but be aware of the need for titrating; don't stop it cold turkey.