Neurologist started mom on Aricept. I hoped it would help with clarity and auditory hallucinations. Unfortunately, since starting Aricept, nightmares or insomnia, crying and incontinence are new issues. MD plans on adding Namenda but I am leaning towards stopping the Aricept all together and let this progress naturally. Anyone else have this experience?
Aricept is an aceylcholine esterase inhibitor. There are side effects that are quite common with it. You've described some of them. A lesser known (more rare) side effect can be a UTI due to increased urine retention by some people. Be sure to have your mother checked for a UTI, since she is having such unusual behavior.
Personally I am not impressed with the Alzheimer's medications that are currently available. They carry a disclaimer that they do not affect the progress of the disease, but may help some people function on a higher level longer. They are worth a try, but I'm never surprised when someone says they don't seem to help. Unfortunately, we can't run parallel studies with the same person to see what would have happened if they hadn't taken the drug, so we're left guessing if they help and if we should stop. The doctor should be able to help you with this.
But if your mother developed these symptoms after she started Aricept and you reported the symptoms to the doctor and now s/he is thinking about ADDING another drug....you need a new doctor.
Any change in mental status should be reported to the doctor immediately.
To be honest, I didn't notice a difference when he was on the medication, except the Aricept made him nauseous. When I tapered him off, I noticed no change then either. So, he's been off since 2010 and the disease has progressed at a slow rate.
If I had it to do over again, I wouldnt put him on anything. This is a progressive disease and I don't know why anyone would want to prolong the inevitable. It makes more sense to let it happen, take it a day at a time and deal,with the slow changes.
I know everyone is different and some may say they've found that those two meds have made positive changes. But I personally didn't see it and I've heard from others too who have seen no changes. By the way, my doctor agreed with me to take him off.
Good luck to you with whatever you decided to do.