My Mom has been having delusions and is paranoid that the manager of her apartment complex is stealing her clothes/belongings. She hides many of her possessions and then believes the manager comes into the apartment in the middle of the night and steals them.
I'm her Son and live-in aide and I am the one who has to do a full apartment search and find all of the things she hides. Even though I eventully find them all, she thinks they are being stolen and returned.
Her Doctor has just prescribed a low dose of Risperidone in liquid form for me to put into her favorite beverage. According to a search on drugs.com, this medication is not to be given to dementia patients under any circumstance and the side effects seem horrible.
I believe her Doctor more than a web site but I am now having doubts about getting this medication. Would appreciate any guidance. Thank you in advance!
All meds have risks. When my LO was prescribed a certain med, I researched it online and was very worried that it said not for dementia patients, but, when I talked to numerous other caretakers, family members of dementia patients, etc., they all said yes, MANY people with dementia take that med and it really helps them. It turned out fine and my LO took a small dose of that med for years with no problem. She also took a daily med for anxiety and depression. That helped a lot too. It wasn't Risperidone, but, another med. She did take Risperidone too, for a short time. She never had any scary hallucinations. Just sweet and kind ones. But, everyone is different.
Agitation is very common in dementia and most of the time gets worse. If her doctor prescribed it, have a discussion with him/her about your concerns.
Good luck to you!
Again, I want to thank everyone for responding to my question and to do so as quickly as you did. my prayers to you and your loved ones!