Managing Agitation in Seniors with Dementia

It’s difficult to come to the realization that your loved one suffering from dementia is losing more and more things. They find themselves unable to remember their visit with their grandkids just yesterday. They claim to have taken their medication but you see their pills lying in the pill case untouched. They may have once been a kind, calm and even tempered person but now to your puzzlement they seem to grow agitated and fly into a rage so rapidly. You see them presenting as frequently scared, confused, and unpredictable. The things they can recall seem so clear and strong in their mind, things like the name of their spouse, their favorite music, and significant events from the past all seem so strong in their mind and time seems to stand still when they’re reminiscing about them.

When Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia has been identified in your loved one, the hardest times usually for them will be the nights. You may find them wandering through the home and be worried about their safety. You can tell the fits of rage they fly into leave lasting damages to their body. You may take them to the restroom and find them retaliating and screaming at you.

As Alzheimer’s progresses, patients can exhibit hostile behavior. Agitation indicates that a person is anxious or restless. They may be unable to establish a routine, and pacing and insomnia may result from agitation. Aggression is a state of intensified hostility, and a person experiencing it may verbally lash out, or in extreme cases attempt to hit or injure someone.

Behavioral and psychological symptoms are quite prevalent in dementia and can affect up to 90% of those who are afflicted with the condition. Agitation, psychosis, anxiety, sadness, and apathy are other symptoms of dementia that can accompany memory loss. More distress is frequently caused by these symptoms than by the cognitive changes.

Agitation and irritation frequently have a purpose or a root cause. When they do occur in your loved one, you should try and determine what may have caused it. If you address the cause, the behavior might stop. Your loved one may, for instance, be experiencing pain, depression or stress, be getting too little sleep, may be constipated or some other biological need, may have had a sudden change in something previously well known, may be feeling loss, there may be too much noise or confusion or too many strangers in the room, may be feeling lonely, or it could be a medicine interaction.

Watching out for early signs of aggressiveness or anger can help you to recognize the symptoms and address them before any troublesome behavior occurs. Ignoring the situation will only exacerbate the outbursts.

Recent studies have shown that non drug therapies are more successful than drugs in lowering agitation and hostility in dementia patients. Outdoor activities performed better than antipsychotic medications in terms of reducing physical violence, and massage and touch therapy was more beneficial for verbal aggression than standard care.