![]() Insomnia, sleep apnoea (breathing difficulties) and restless legs are common symptoms.Ī person affected with these types of dementia may often unknowingly ‘act’ out their dreams by shouting and moving around in bed. They can suffer from confusion, nightmares and hallucinations. People who have dementia caused by Lewy body disease, such as Parkinsons’ disease (PD) or dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) are often sleepy by day but have very restless and disturbed nights. The type of dementia you have can affect your sleep. Sleep for people who have dementia with Lewy bodies and Parkinson’s disease Sleeping a lot can also be influenced by people’s sleeping patterns before they had dementia, as some people need more sleep than others. Sometimes a person with dementia might completely reverse their normal sleep pattern, staying up all night and then sleeping all day. There are also other parts of the brain which control whether or not we stay awake, and these may also not work properly if they become damaged. For some people, it may be that their internal ‘biological clock’, which judges what time it is, becomes damaged so the person starts to feel sleepy at the wrong time of day. Nobody completely understands why dementia affects sleeping patterns. ![]() not being able to tell the difference between night and day.getting up in the early hours and thinking it’s day time or time to go to work (disorientation in time).waking up more often and staying awake longer during the night.becoming disorientated in the dark if they wake up to use the toilet. ![]() sleeping during the day and being awake and restless during the night.Problems with sleep are very common for people with dementia. If the person is still living at home though, then it’s important to get advice from your GP or nurse on how best to do this. This sort of care is normally done by a health or social care professional in a care home or hospice. However, if a person is lying down in bed and asleep for most of the time they will need to be looked after to make sure they don’t develop any physical health problems. Providing the person doesn’t appear to be uncomfortable or distressed, then sleeping more during the day isn’t normally a reason to be worried. It may also be worth asking for a medication review with the GP or speaking to a pharmacist as medication can cause a range of side effects. If this is the case you should speak to the GP, to rule out any infections or conditions that could be affecting the person's sleep.
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