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Had to move mom from a memory care facility to a nursing home due to Medicaid. She is on hospice Since then she is sleeping a lot. They had her on .5mg Ativan because of combative and agitated behavior They just lowered it to .25. I still find when I visit she can’t keep her eyes open. They also said a lot of it because of the progressing Alzheimer’s. She’s being evaluated by a psychiatric nurse Monday. Anyone experience this? As I write this I’m feeding her and her eyes are closed and she’s not making sense. But she’s eating

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The last year my Husband was alive he slept on average 20 to 22 hours a day.
Sleeping a lot is one of the signs of decline. And it is one of the signs of decline that Hospice will accept when recertifying someone for Hospice.
And it is possible that when the eyes are closed she is not sleeping but just has her eyes closed. It takes energy to keep the eyes open AND there is a lot of stimuli with sight so if she is focusing on you and eating keeping her eyes closed allows her to focus on eating and what your voice.
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Advice? I guess just go with the flow? She's declining and on hospice so your expectations need to be really low. Be there for her and do what you can to make sure she is comfortable.
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So sorry for your gradual loss. My Dad took to his bed, stopped eating and died in a week. We played music for him since that part of the brain may be active. It was near Mother’s Day so my sister said “Maybe you want to spend Mother’s Day with your mother.” Deceased. He said “Thank you” his last words
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This is what end of life looks like; sleeping a lot, eating less and less, increased agitation and anxiety, etc. Since hospice is on board, your mom is thought to have less than 6 months to live; speak to her hospice nurse about what she thinks is going on and how long she feels mom has left.

My mother had advanced dementia when I got hospice on board in December. She had a very rapid decline 2 months later and took to her bed one day, stopped eating and was semi-comatose. She passed 7 days later. She had been declining quite a bit over the past year, which is why I'd asked hospice to evaluate her in the first place. But I still didn't expect her to take that rapid decline and pass w/i a week the way she did. When dementia and other health issues are at play, you just never know when the elder is going to reach the end of their journey, really. I was relieved when mom finally did pass, though, I have to tell you, because advanced dementia is just such a terrible thing for the poor souls to go through. She's at peace now and for that I'm very grateful.

Wishing you peace in your heart for whatever is forthcoming.
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Thanks for all your answers. This is a horrible disease. I hope they find a cure one day.
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