My mom has early dementia, we switched her sofa & recliner location. Could a simple move like that throw her into an extreme confused state?

Yes.
like it or not your going to need to keep things in place for the duration. even small changes can really set them off. As they continue to fall into this state (they WON'T be getting better) small changes will be harder for the m to deal with and that of course makes your like harder. If you have to make a change you need to clearly explain how,why and when and probably explain it more than once. Keep it the same right down to the remote for the TV.

Best of luck

I feel that the reason we don't notice the mental decline sooner in folks is because they are on auto-pilot with their routine and actions.  Once you take them out of their "everyday" or change something about their everyday, it becomes more obvious that they aren't actively making decisions...but just doing what they have always done.  It's pretty shocking sometimes.  Another poster mentioned UTI's and that should definitely be checked as well because it does cause mental confusion in the elderly.

YUP as someone said on your POST ..... UTI's MESS UP THE BRAIN,,, BADLY, ,AND QUICKLY.

EASIEST THING TO TEST and usually an antibiotic and fluids, hygene, etc.

when was her last brain scan? did she recently have any physical issues that may have caused any concerns to her head?

And here I go... My cousin moved his mom into a 6 pack. He thought it would be extremely difficult to reason with her. Her dementia was so bad, she didn't know she moved...

TDruggs,

After spending months with my Aunt who has Alzheimer's, I came to the conclusion that any change in their routine is like moving the furniture on a blind person.
It completely upsets the apple cart!

Having said that, there are other things that can cause confusion.
Especially urinary tract infections!!
In our elderly LOs it can be very serious!! Something to keep in mind!

TDruggs: I see by your profile that your mother has vision problems. That alone could cause confusion for her. It did for my mother as she knew where she'd placed all of her possessions and if they were moved even one iota, it threw her off totally into confusion.

Hi - my mom is 84 and has dementia. In the early stages we changed the position of her bed to facilitate ease of getting in and out without falling because she had fallen and gotten stuck between the bed and some furniture. I think she also had a change in medication at that time, whether it was the change in meds or her room it's like she went from 10 to zero overnight.

One morning I woke up to find her sleeping on the floor right in front of her bedroom door. Apparently she had gone to the bathroom in the night and couldn't find her way back to her room, didn't know where she was and so just lay down on the floor and went to sleep. Mind you, the bathroom is just outside her bedroom about 4 steps away..... I suppose she looked in and her room didn't look like what she thought it did so she didn't know where she was.....

I started labeling everything and putting up big colourful signs/posters i.e. Bathroom/Toilet or Bedroom.

I think her confusion and rapid deterioation had more to do with the change in meds and the rapid progression of the illness. Making small changes to her surroundings didn't help. She didn't know where she was, wanted to go to home when she was already home or to work......

Wandering then became a big concern. Fear of her leaving home and getting lost......something you hear happening all the time....seniors missing..... Her sister, had dementia also but at a much younger age probably in her 60's. She was retired but on multiple occassions would get up and go to work. The office would call asking for someone to come pick her up. Come to think of it, their mom, my grandmother also had dementia (not good for me). She was missing for two days.....left the house with her four dogs and was found luckily alive, with her four dogs in some bushes not far from home......

It's good that you have 24 hour caregivers. Your mom's memory may not get much better and her confusion may get worse as dementia progresses. There is medication that the doctor can prescribe that may slow the progress but maybe not bring it back.

Donepezil is used to treat confusion (dementia) related to Alzheimer's disease. It does not cure Alzheimer's disease, but it may improve memory, awareness, and the ability to function. This medication is an enzyme blocker that works by restoring the balance of natural substances (neurotransmitters) in the brain. My mom starting taking it but probably too late. I think it helped a little though. Maybe you should talk to her doctor about it and see what they say.

There are also other things that people swear by like coconut oil. The claim is based on the theory that the brain cells of people with Alzheimer's disease are unable to use glucose to produce energy properly, and so the nerve cells 'starve'. Some believe coconut oil may act as an alternative energy source for the brain. However, they say there is not enough scientific evidence to know whether this is the case. I tried that too - mixed it with her food. It's a natural product so didn't hurt. May have helped.

There is also N-acetylcysteine (NAC). Because NAC helps regulate glutamate levels and replenish glutathione, they say it may benefit those with brain and memory ailments. NAC is a suppliment that can be found in most health food stores. I tried that too but again too late and it upset mom's sensitive stomach.

If I had a do over, I would have started using these products or others much earlier. Unfortunately my mom is now in the later stages of the decease, has no idea where she is, can no longer communicate or even recognize me.

Sounds like your moms prognosis is much better. If you have time maybe you can research above. For the most part I don't think they will hurt.

Best wishes for you and your mom!

It's possible she has been developing strategies to compensate for her loss of abilities for many more years than your realize. She may speak as well as ever, make comments on the news, behave appropriately in public, wear clean clothes, etc. But beneath the "normal" appearance, she may have lost much more than you realize. She may have been getting around the house purely on muscle memory.

My mother reads The Washington Post newspaper every day and talks about the latest headlines. She remembers what we did last a year ago on Thanksgiving. But her visual processing is very poor. If I put several common household items on the table, she can't pick out the hairbrush. When she steps out of her room at memory care, she has to learn all over again, every day, which way to the dining area. She lost the ability to add and subtract years before she had to go to memory care, but we didn't realize it.

It's a strange patchwork of abilities, compensations, and gaps.

I don’t like anyone moving my stuff around.

I vote to move it back to the way it was.

When my husband had dementia and later Alzheimers, I attended Caregiver Support meetings once a month. Our Caregiver coordinator lived her life, first as wife to a 47 year old man who developed early onset Alzheimers and took care of him at home except when she worked he attended Adult Day Care. Second, Caregiving was her profession since graduating from coollege, so her work, beginning as a caregiver and progressing to Director of Care Giving at various homes, and ending as coordinator of county sponsored group. One thing she made sure we knew, among many, was that people who have dementia or memory loss cannot deal with change. Moving furniture around is change. Taking a different route home is change, they get confused. Moving from one town/apartment/house is change and they cannot take this. They will want to "go home", and then get lost. I would suggest leave the chairs and sofa where they were to make it easier for the loved ones to find them and feel safe.

Probably seems "backwards" to her.

Here's some funny stories for perspective.

When we lived in North Carolina, my husband had a job where he travelled almost 3 weeks out of the month. If he was going somewhere "nice", I would go along with him for a week or 2. He was gone more than at home so we had 2 funny/weird incidents:

Once when we were home and in bed, he looked up at the ceiling and said, "Which hotel has ceiling fans?" I said, " You're home."

Like many men, he prefers to drive when we're in the car together. I can count on both hands the number of times he "passed" the house on the way home from somewhere. He saw it so infrequently, it didn't register in his brain what it looked like.

So changes in room set-ups can cause confusion since it doesn't look like "home."

I would have her tested for UTI. Pretty sure you can get OTC test strips, try that first before you make a trip to the doctor.
But moving furniture can be very confusing. I would put it back where it was before. (unless the placement was a danger, posing a trip hazard. If that is the case she will eventually get used to the new placement. Keeping her safe is priority)

Absolutely. Put the furniture back where it was. Visits outside the home to places she's been hundreds of times (like a child's home) will do the same thing.

You have to stick with routine from now on. The only thing that I can add here is if this came from out of the blue (even though it happened about the same time as moving furniture) have her urine checked for infection. Urinary infection symptoms like confusion, anger, other behavior issues can come on very quickly and some will think the person has has some kind of stroke or mental event. If she doesn't already have one, get dr to do an order for visiting nurse. The nurse can do all kinds of lab work so that mom doesn't have to go into the drs office.

Oh yes, I switched my moms bedroom set around and had to switch it back because she thought she was somewhere else and was confused to her surroundings. Keep things as is in my opinion. I agree with other posters about checking for a UTI.

I agree with the other regarding checking for UTI. Sudden changes can be precipitated by UTI. When I first joined the forum, I was skeptical of all these suggestions, but mom's first UTI after moving to MC (months later, so it wasn't the move) she exhibited extreme signs of sun-downing. She would be okay in the morning, but later afternoon into the evening she was fit to be tied! Had to get out! Had guests coming! Set off every door alarm trying to get out! We had to use anti-anxiety meds along with the antibiotic until it was resolved.

UTIs do odd things, esp when dementia is involved. Subsequent UTIs showed up as night time bed wetting (read SOAKING), but once treated, it stopped.

You can start with a home test, but they aren't always sensitive enough. Sometimes it takes a culture test. You can also try moving the furniture back to where it was and see if that helps. Changes are not good for those with dementia. Routines and where things have been for a long time are important!

Yes, a simple move can cause anxiety. Consistency is key for my mother who has Alzheimer's. A doctor visit or a visit from a family member will increase her confusion for a week. But, those suggestions about the UTI are also valid and worth checking into.

Yes , she is already confused . This horrible disease only gets worst , she needs objects to be where she remembers them being.

Lol 😂 Sorry I have to laugh because I just bought new air fryer oven to replace toaster oven...so the cord couldn’t reach where the toaster oven used to be...& I switched things around...put the dish rack where the coffee maker was ...& vice verse ...first few days I automatically went to make coffee where the dish rack is now...The new oven is much bigger than the toaster oven was...so I was thinking maybe too cumbersome ? But I really don’t want to have to use so much gas to cook in big oven...but I’m getting used to this change...I think 🤔...cause it seems like I can get robotic & just do things out of habit...

Give her a few days to get used to the minor change.

Hugs 🤗

Why would you change her room around? If it had been that way for years, yes the change could cause confusion. I am 71 and my daughter came home to live after being laid off. She was given a shelf in the pantry but she went and changed all my shelves to what was logical to her. I could not find a thing and put it back the way "I" had it. Now take a person suffering from a Dementia?

I would, also, have her checked for a UTI.

My mother, who is just aging, not dxed with any memory issues other than normal aging..will kind of pitch a fit if things are moved. You cannot even clean her place--moving the birdcage to clean it and she's in a tizzy.

Her furniture has not been moved in 17 years. She added a nicer recliner a few years ago and it had to be EXACTLY in the same place as the first one. We had to take the bedskirt off her bed and she was such a pill about it--YB just put it back on, even though she's tripped/slid on it umpteen times. It's not necessary by any means, but she WANTS it there.

I think seeing things in the exact same location makes her feel safe. But, for your mom? Do check for the UTI. Mom just gets quiet and moody when she has a UTI, I almost wish she'd 'act out'..then we wouldn't have infections that go on for a week before someone notices.

My mom's scooter broke down. She focused on that so much that the Al social worker called us to handle it. Anyone who came in the room was asked about the status of repair or replacement. Until it was repaired 36 hours later it consumed her and she was super confused. Within 2 hours of fix, she was back to remembering things. Ymmv. I don't know if moving furniture back will help.

But yes, check for uti.

"Sudden" is usually a key word that means she could have a UTI, which elderly women get very frequently and often have no other symptoms except changes in behavior and cognition, even hallucinations. If left untreated can turn septic and be life threatening, Please have her checked for this right away. It can be treated with antibiotics.