My mom's mental condition seems to be declining. As far as I know, mom has small infarct dementia and "white matter disease."

Yesterday, I went to the assisted living, and she had neatly folded all her clothing in a pile that was about 2 1/2 feet tall. She had no idea where she was going, or how she would get there.

Why does she do this/why do persons with dementia wander...or in this case, pack her bags? She's always been spunky, and now she is a person with dementia and spunky.

Once, at the AL, she packed her walker bag, with three bottles of perfume, some souvenirs from the Holy Land, and a rotten banana. She was found down by the road, and thankfully someone brought her back. They put her in the mental impairment unit temporarily, and she has not "walked" since - partly because its winter in Ohio and I dont think she would venture into the cold.

I really dont want them to send her to the Memory Impairment Unit unless she wanders again...even then, is there anything to keep her safe in her own room, on the regular side of the assisted living. She knows everyone there, and its her own "room" that is a comfort and familiar to her. She seems to go in spurts with this confusion.

Is there a REASON why people with dementia wander, or pack their suitcase, like my mom? Or is it just "grey" or "white" matter disease????

She does not show other signs of alzheimers, so I am presuming its another dementia.

I just thought I would pipe up on this..this was the single most exhausting issue with Dad once we moved in together.
I have mentioned in my previous posts that he would even try to climb the gate to get out of the yard.
One day it was over 100 degrees outside and he wanted to leave. I tried to distract him and even gave him adavan to calm him down..he persisted..he put on three shirts and stacked three hats on his head, (we actually thought that part was funny) he filled a cloth shopping bag with a couple of screwdrivers, a small book, a few undies, a pair of socks and a knife that he used to use in the military.
He was by this time "locked in" so he couldn't go out the front door.
He figured out the back door quickly. I called the police to help me and tried to reason with him till they came.
This was the last time they were here. He proceeded to stack some old concrete blocks against the fence to climb over. (whenever he turned his back I moved them away)LOL..
While the police were here, he tried to hit one of them and get arrested..another ploy to get out..but because they had dealt with him several times before they would never arrest him in his condition.
They finally got him back in the air conditioned house and he drank some water. My daughter came home and helped calm him. She is a blessing when those things happen, he just adores her.
As the cops decided it was time for them to go, he got up and tried to follow them out the front door. They physically stopped him and told him he had to stay here till it cooled down outside. Finally he agreed.
After he fell asleep, he forgot. That is just one of my stories..
He was trying to get back to his post at the base. In his mind this was a hotel and he couldn't afford to pay it anymore, so he wanted to go back to the barracks.
He was going "home". Someplace that exists only in his mind.

I always thought the wandering (especially with a suitcase) and wanting to "go home" was because they are not comfortable in their own minds and are searching for the place/time where they were comfortable. Perhaps the packing and heading out begins as going on a trip in their mind but they forget what they are doing along the way.

Funny - one of the earlier signs of impairment Mom demonstrated was NOT wanting to go on trips (which she had always loved). She didn't want to pack, decide what to take, do the myriad chores that precede an absence, etc. Looking back, this was her not being able to handle all the details and decisionmaking of going somewhere, but we didn't realize it at the time.

But after she was bedridden, she often wanted to go somewhere - she had driven here and was planning on going home or somewhere else in a little while... After a while, that stopped, too. I think I liked it better when she was still "traveling" in her bed... it was sad when she forgot about that...

I think it does have to do with wanting to be somewhere they aren't - they just don't exactly know where that is anymore... anywhere but here...

PS So NICE to "see" you, JJ!!! Happy Holidays to you and yours!

I'm sorry you're going through this. I can sympathize.

My mom still refuses to let us decorate her assisted living home with pictures on the wall because she "doesn't know how long she'll be there." It sounds ominous every time she says it. We don't know what she means. I don't think she's saying she's going to pass away, so I'm afraid she thinks she is going to move somewhere else soon. We don't know where she thinks that is and it worries me. Best of luck to you and yours!

My mom frequently packed her suitcase (after we took that away she would pack a bag or pillowcase). She said she was going home. Even though she hadn't been "home" for many years. It's sad to wonder what is going through their minds. I just took the bag and said we couldn't go right now. That was enough for then. Time has no real meaning to them. I'm thinking of you and wishing you patience.

JJ in my experience so far with AD it seems they all do this at one time or another, their trying to find something familiar to them whether its their home or family but even if we offer this up to them in the way of their LO's in particular or pictures they still dont recognize them or the home.
The brain deteriorates to a point where their short term (and long term) memory is shot so to her this AL is something unfamiliar to her even if you think it isnt.
It goes in waves and the later the time of day the worse the deficits get.
My MIL will recognize someone early in the day but by the end of the day forget it, its anyones guess whats going to happen and heaven help the others that have to put up with the incessant screams from her because shes getting flustered at not recognizing anyone or anything. Locks on a door are a must now.
It also gets much worse if their not sleeping properly.
Have you had her PCP try adjusting her meds yet?
If they have and this is the result then Id be seriously thinking about the MI unit for her simply because of the time of year.
I say this because what happens if the staff of the AL becomes distracted by say another resident and she takes that moment to wander outside in the cold? God forbid they dont notice it right away.