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Forgetfulness, Insomnia, On Thyroid Treatment. Where Do I Begin Treatment ?
My 88 year old mother is having problems remembering what day it is. She will sleep for 2 hours and wake up thinking it's the next day. She sends birthday cards to the same grandchild more than once in the same month. We suspect that she may be getting confused about money matters. She is under treatment for a thyroid problem and she has always had problems with insomnia. She still drives and so far has no problems with that. Where do I begin with getting her evaluated/treated?
Wed, 10 Jul 2013
HHi there ~
I understand your concerns for your mother. However with hypothyroidism, dementia is very common. I am hoping that it is very adequately treated. You also need to get a B12 level checked. I believe that you might need to have a geriatric consult for her. There are also psychiatrists who have expertise in gerontology who might be helpful. Sometimes it is just some tweaking of medications that is the answer to your problem, and sometimes more medications are the answer. Also testing might need to be done and you probably will need to consult a regular doctor for those investigation i.e. imaging studies of the brain like MRI etc. I am thinking that she already has a doctor that manages her medication. I hope you get her help as soon as you can.
I hope this helps. Take care and have a lovely day!
I understand your concerns for your mother. However with hypothyroidism, dementia is very common. I am hoping that it is very adequately treated. You also need to get a B12 level checked. I believe that you might need to have a geriatric consult for her. There are also psychiatrists who have expertise in gerontology who might be helpful. Sometimes it is just some tweaking of medications that is the answer to your problem, and sometimes more medications are the answer. Also testing might need to be done and you probably will need to consult a regular doctor for those investigation i.e. imaging studies of the brain like MRI etc. I am thinking that she already has a doctor that manages her medication. I hope you get her help as soon as you can.
I hope this helps. Take care and have a lovely day!
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Hi,
Memory impairment is quite common at this age. Various factors such as narrowing of intracranial blood vessels, previous brain insults apart from hypothyroidism are the known causes.
At this instant the most important aspect is to know how severe is the impairment and whether or not she is capable of performing the daily activities. A detailed cognitive and neurological function assessment can provide information about the aforementioned aspects.
A qualified neurologist would be the right person to evaluate her cognitive and neurological finctions. He/she can also aff vitamin supplements and tocopherol supplements which have nerve remyelinating properties.
Hope this helps.
Regards.
Memory impairment is quite common at this age. Various factors such as narrowing of intracranial blood vessels, previous brain insults apart from hypothyroidism are the known causes.
At this instant the most important aspect is to know how severe is the impairment and whether or not she is capable of performing the daily activities. A detailed cognitive and neurological function assessment can provide information about the aforementioned aspects.
A qualified neurologist would be the right person to evaluate her cognitive and neurological finctions. He/she can also aff vitamin supplements and tocopherol supplements which have nerve remyelinating properties.
Hope this helps.
Regards.
I find this answer helpful
2 users find this helpful
1 Doctor agrees with this answer
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