My 88-year-old mother is in the beginning stages of dementia. She has vivid night dreams that seem real to her. What is this?

My mother was put on Namenda without my knowledge and at first I thought she was talking about real people. Since I don't live near her I didn't realize she was hallucinating. She was on it for 6 months. It took 2 months being off the medication for the symptoms to subside. Boy was that terrifying for her. Also, I believe it caused severe constipation.

Some persons with dementia will have periods of delirium in which they are more active and agitated and appear to be seeing and hearing things that
you can't .. If she is under care of a physician or a hospice ..talk with them, adjustments in medication may help or lessen the impact of these.

Is she on Aricept or another cholinesterase inhibitor? Vivid dreams are one of the less common side effects. Would she do better at a lower dose or skipping a day or two?

My Mom had alz and went thru various stages of this disease. To learn about this-be in contact with your local agency on aging or the Alzheimer's Association chapter near you...Their toll free number is 1-800-272-3900 and is 24/7...Hopefully you will get some answers on this.
Good luck on you careging journey. By the way, you mentioned she has dementia-Alzheimer's is the most common of the many dementia.
Hap

There is a stage that Alz's patients go through. At night they get so worse. It is called Sundowners. You might need to ck with the doc. They have med. to help her sleep. My mom talks all night now without her med. She used to get so mean , tried to run away and was in and out of bed all night. Good luck.