Does anyone else know what I'm talking about when I say Mom's dementia is like Bipolar disorder?

BTW, I just checked and the surge is associated with the release of neurotransmitters, e.g. serotonin, in the brain. Even if your mother is not ready to cross over yet, she may still be having neurotransmitter release for some reason. From what I just read, these periods are enjoyable to the person experiencing them, so are a gift to enjoy. There are so few gifts when one is older that it is nice to read about this.

What Jeanne describes is called surging. Quite often as a person nears death, they will have a period that may be short or last more than a day where they seem to be recovering. They talk and eat like nothing is wrong. It is a good thing in letting families enjoy each other once again. It gives the person who is dying a last taste of the good things of this world. The bad thing about surging is it often gives a family the wrong sense that someone is getting better. After the surge, death usually follows fairly quickly. Since your mother is cycling, I don't know if it is surging. However, I don't know if we know enough about the end of life to say anything with certainty.

I wonder if this isn't related to her end-of-life experience. It is more extreme than my husband just went through but in some ways similar. Eating some days, alert, able to communicate, then almost all day sleeping with no eating.

I think talking about this with the hospice nurse and/or social worker will help you understand the best.

She is 85. appears to be vascular dementia. She has heart failure, very frail and in hospice care with one of us girls with her around the clock. No major testing being done she is so frail

What is your mother's diagnosis? (What kind of dementia?) Is she being treated by a specialist? Have you discussed these wild fluctuations with the doctor?