If your loved one has dementia, you might have noticed them becoming more confused or agitated later in the day. If so, you’re not alone. This is called sundowning, and it’s a common symptom of dementia.
Sundowning in elderly people is stressful to witness if you don’t know what’s happening and can increase the emotional impact of dementia on family members. However, it’s manageable once you understand it. If your loved one has dementia, there are a number of easy steps you can take to reduce the chance of symptoms worsening in the evening.
What is Sundowning in Elderly People?
The symptoms of dementia tend to intensify later in the day. Starting in the late afternoon and continuing through the evening, your loved one may become intensely agitated and confused. Sundowning increases paranoia in elderly people, and they may even wander or hallucinate.
While the root causes of sundowning aren’t well understood, a variety of environmental factors are known to contribute, including:
- Insufficient sunlight, dim lighting or uneven shadows
- Overstimulation (from things like excess street noise or a crowded environment)
- Boredom or under stimulation
- Unfamiliar surroundings
- Disruption of their sleep schedule (such as jet lag or a long daytime nap)
- Unfamiliar people
- Loneliness
On top of that, hard-to-see internal factors can also contribute to sundowning in elderly people, such as:
- Unmet physical needs like hunger, thirst, pain or discomfort.
- Mental health disorders like depression or anxiety
- Loss of hearing, sight or other senses
- Needing to use the bathroom
- Infections or other illnesses
Luckily, many of these factors are easy to mitigate with a little preparation.
How to Calm Seniors With Dementia in the Evening
The best way to help your loved one stay calm in the evening is to start in the morning. Being prepared and consistent can go a long way toward making nights easier.
- Keep a predictable routine. Make sure your loved one’s daily schedule is consistent, with waking, meals, activities and bedtime at the same time each day.
- Limit stimulants. Don’t give them too much caffeine or sugar, and only do so in the morning.
- Provide lots of lighting. Open blinds during the day to let sunlight in. Keep rooms brightly (and evenly) lit. Cover or put away reflective surfaces like mirrors, which can create uneven lighting and distressing shadows.
- Plan light activities. Plan a few familiar, easy activities each day. This will keep your loved one from getting bored without overstimulating them and increase the chance that they’ll be sleepy at bedtime. Incorporating social activities can help, as lonely elderly people are more likely to experience sundowning.
- Bring familiar items. Favorite items like photographs and keepsakes can help seniors with dementia stay grounded and relaxed, especially in unfamiliar settings.
- Limit daytime naps. Long naps during the daytime can interfere with seniors’ sleep schedules.
- Reduce stimulation at night. When the sun goes down, turn off TVs and close blinds. Try putting on some familiar, soothing music or playing some relaxing nature sounds to help your loved one wind down.
- Create evening rituals. Add a few familiar, comforting rituals to your loved one’s evening routine. Making them a cup of caffeine-free tea or reading to them are common, but anything familiar and soothing works.
- Turn on a night light. This can reduce your seniors’ agitation when it’s dark. (It’ll also reduce the chance that they hurt themselves while moving around at night.)
It’s impossible to prevent sundowning entirely, so it’s important to know how to respond if your loved one becomes agitated.
Remember that unmet physical needs are often behind sundowning. By taking the time to learn how your loved one responds to physical needs like hunger, thirst and fatigue, you can address those needs promptly and defuse the situation.
If your loved one is distressed due to something that happened during the day, one of the best ways to calm them down is to distract them. Try bringing up memories of a favorite moment you shared or ask them about an old hobby to get their mind off the subject.
Caregivers Can Help With Sundowning in Elderly People
Keeping a senior with dementia calm and comfortable during the evenings can be challenging, but with in-home memory care, you don’t have to do it alone. The compassionate and skilled caregivers at FirstLight Home Care know how to reduce risk factors of sundowning throughout the day, and how to soothe and comfort your loved one when it does happen.
If you’re struggling to help your loved one manage dementia symptoms like sundowning, FirstLight Home Care is here for you. To learn about how our dementia home care services can comfort them and give you peace of mind, don’t hesitate to contact us.