How to Handle Dementia Hallucinations & What to Expect

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Thanks for watching! In this video I'll share two of most common dementia hallucinations with examples of what they would look like based on what I've seen in real life working at a psychiatric hospital for dementia folks and exactly what to do and say so that they calm down quickly.

Make sure to watch to the end of the video to learn why hallucinations happen as a symptom of dementia based on what I have learned from the psychiatrist at my hospital.

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Visual Hallucinations

Visual hallucinations are one of the most common ones your loved one or client may experience.
Examples I've seen in real life are the most often are a dog walking around, bugs , a child in the room
Hallucinations are vivid and very real for your loved one or client.

They can happen at random but tend to be more prevalent in the late afternoon or evening as a part of sundowning. Hallucinations are also often triggered by objects in the room much like when you're falling asleep and see shadows that look like other objects. That is likely the experience of your loved one or client on a bigger scale


Auditory Hallucination:

Auditory hallucinations are also going to be one of the most common hallucinations you'll see. The most common auditory hallucinations I've witnessed are hearing someone they know calling for them (the most popular one), a dog barking, children laughing, random objects banging or moving or hearing voices in general.

I've seen auditory hallucinations occur the same way visual ones do
which is mostly at random or as a part of sundowning. or with triggers such as loud sudden noises



2 Ways of Dealing with This: Therapeutic Fibbing or Validation
Therapeutic Fibbing

There are some people in the camp of never lying to our loved ones or clients and others in the camp of therapeutic fibbing. I've personally tried both approaches and my personal opinion is that when you're dealing with someone who isn't in touch with reality anyways.

Therapeutic fibbing tends to calm them down easier and faster because you are fully immersed in their world.

Validation:
If your values are to absolutely not lie, you can calm your loved one or client with validation
which means repeating what they said and reassuring them but this may take longer and still end up with them becoming agitated.

My advice would be to live in their reality as much as possible and find an opportunity for distraction and take it if you can in order to avoid eventually denying their reality which usually ends with them getting upset with you.

Why Do Hallucinations Happen in Dementia

What most people don't know about dementia is that it physically changes the brain and brain chemistry as part of the disease process that physical and chemical change in addition to memory loss can bring about psychotic symptoms like hallucinations or delusions.

Hallucinations are especially seen in people with lewy body dementia but can occur as a symptom
for many other kinds of dementia. Contact your doctor or a psychiatrist that works with geriatrics for more information on your loved one or client.