My husband in middle stage of dementia, has been hypersexual lately. It began with verbalizing a lot with me, but he's begun acting out on it in his room. As long as it's private, the staff have been respectful and they understand it's normal. But this morning, naked, he tried to get an aide to get into bed with him. The doctor just doubled his antidepressant and I was hoping that would be enough to lower his libido. Does anyone know of a specific medication that would help curb this hypersexuality? Is it treatable or is he going to get kicked out of MC? This is my constant anxiety, that he'll get kicked out and no one else will take him. Yet, I keep reading that it's a common thing. I need some perspective, friends....
Here's an interesting article on the subject:
https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/1999/0515/p2880.html
Best of luck.
There are many causes and types of dementia. Learning about brain function can help you understand what skills and abilities are retained and what might be shifting. Regardless of the changes in the brain, it is crucial to consider the person first, not the dementia. The need for connection, touch, intimacy, and purpose is part of being
human and that does not change.
Matilda
What can change with dementia are some of the functions of the brain. For instance, visual fields can become narrow and more central, with less attention given to peripheral areas. Impulse control, self-awareness, seeing another person’s perspective, and making logical choices can be impacted. Time awareness can blur, creating confusion about the relevance of people and places. Individual preferences, wants, and needs can become more pronounced with brain change. Consider those brain functions in the context of sexual behaviours, perhaps a resident making suggestive comments or getting grabby! Can you still see the person, or are you only focused on the behaviour that makes you squirm.
If facilities can lock others' doors to keep other residents out, I do not understand why he cannot have these boundaries instituted.
* What is the responsibility of the facility to keep residents safe from sexual or otherwise, inappropriate behavior of other residents? If the facility was held responsible, they would certainly take care of it - alarms ... locks on doors ...
Gena / Touch Matters
This is the link from my post when it was happening....
https://www.agingcare.com/questions/my-80-year-old-dad-and-77-year-old-step-mom-both-have-alzheimers-and-my-dad-wants-to-grope-her-451330.htm?orderby=recent
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1413960/
Your Doctor should know!!! That's what they are there for.
Anyone concerned should bear in mind that when this occurs it is presumably part of the illness, not some kind of moral failing.
Caregivers need to be focused on reducing the behavior of the victim, not dealing with some sort of misplaced personal embarrassment.
I can’t think of how to say this without sounding “preachy” and I don’t mean to, but please Caregivers, don’t forget to accept this issue with compassion for your LO and yourself.