Bri, she should NOT let him nap during the day.   Also maybe he just wants
some company before he falls asleep.    You know... like a kid who wants a
glass of water, a story, a hug, etc. etc.

This is not being facetious, they often become like children in some ways.
My mother in law "became" a sweet young country girl in her home country of
Estonia.   It was sad in some ways, but she relived a lot of her younger
memories as she went deeper into her illness.

Bri:

Hello...  I'm sorry, but I came into this a bit late.

I noticed in your first posting you mentioned that your Brother in Law
seems very tired, and later on you mentioned that he seems to not be
able to sleep.

Although my Mother probably suffered from dementia brought on by mini-
strokes (we'll never know for CERTAIN), I know that getting her
medications correct took a while.  When she first became ill, she was
put on a combination of Zyprexe and Depakote.  This seemed to help her
dramatically.

However, after a couple of weeks, we noticed her becoming so tired
that at times, I would have to practically drag her from one place to
another.

Her Doctor had us take her off of both of those medications.  She had
more energy, but began to suffer the symptoms of dementia again.  To
make a long story short, in my Mother's case, it was the Depakote that
was making her horribly tired.  When she was only on Zyprexe, she was
OK with decent energy as far as the dementia went.  Then again, I've
heard of people swearing by Depakote.  My Mother also suffered from
heart troubles like your Brother in Law.  In her case, it was
congestive heart failure.  Like your Brother in Law, she was also on a
lot of medication.  So much, I actually had to start documenting it.

Be careful.  I also found that sometimes it was hard to tell if it was
a medication that was making my Mother tired, or a legitimate medical
problem.

We found a great geriatric psychiatrist (recommended to us by a social
worker), who worked with us to get my Mother's medications correct.
Having somebody like this involved is more valuable than I can tell
you.  Social workers can be a great source of information.

If your Sister in Law needs a break, sometimes a social worker can
direct you to businesses that offer services such as sending people to
spend time with a loved one suffering from dementia for reasonable
hourly rates.  We had one here and it was great.  The women they sent
was a lifesaver for us.  Even when my Mother had to go to the
hospital, we had her there each day so my Mother had a friendly,
familiar face.  She was the best.

Taking care of a loved one suffering from dementia can sap your
physical and mental strength away quickly.  It did to my Wife and I,
and by all accounts, we had it relatively easy.

I certainly wish you the best of luck.

Charles R. Whealton
Charles Whealton @ pleasedontspam.com