Anyone experiencing a LO suffering from Emotional Incontinence aka Emotional Lability? If so, did you have any luck with drug therapy and how long did it take?

My precious LO has been crying uncontrollably for weeks now....

Using medication for incontinence can make dementia worse.....

Caralot, I have never heard the term "emotional incontinence." My first thought was loss of control due to emotion, i.e., "I'm so nervous I peed in my pants." Learn something new everyday!!

I have not had this problem with my LO but it is often discussed on the board. Many people report having success with drug therapy, although it often takes several tries to get the right meds and the right dosages.

I would definitely pursue it with her doctor. I'm sure you find it distressing to see her in this condition, and she can't be comfortable either.

quote:

Originally posted by SnowyLynne:
Using medication for incontinence can make dementia worse.....

This is not dementia. Definition of Emotional Lability:

Labile affect or pseudobulbar affect refers to the pathological expression of laughter, crying, or smiling. It is also known as emotional lability, pathological laughter and crying, emotional incontinence, or, more recently, involuntary emotional expression disorder (IEED).[1] Patients may find themselves laughing uncontrollably at something that is only moderately humorous, being unable to stop themselves for several minutes. Episodes may also be mood-incongruent: a patient might laugh (or cry) uncontrollably when angry or frustrated.

She is seeing a geriatric psychiatrist who specializes in AD. I am just wondering if any caregivers have had experience with LO's.

Caralot, what meds have been tried thus far?

quote:

Originally posted by Grassflower:
Caralot, what meds have been tried thus far?

Unfortunately, I do not know the details as I am a paid caregiver and not part of the family. It is just so sad. As long as we can keep her distracted (funny videos, sleeping, etc.) she is okay, but the minute she comes out to eat for example, she burst into tears and sobs all through her meal. Or if she is in her room and wakes from a nap, she will come out and tears are flowing like a faucet. It is so mentally exhausting for her. And it wears her out physically also. She will even cry when she is getting a bath or getting dressed or has company.

It is something that she cannot control. As I understand it, it is something to do with the brain malfuntioning. This is common in people with MS or stroke victims. The doctor just needs to find the right combination of medication.

It just breaks my heart to see her like this. I hope it gets fixed soon.....

I'm sorry you're all having to experience this.

Yes, the ability to self-control mood is lost as the disease progresses. So they're not just irritated, they're FURIOUS. (I see this in my mom under certain circumstances).

And some people do experience completely inappropriate responses over a prolonged period of time.

I've seen others post about both problems and it's clear that it's emotionally and physically exhausting for the LO and for the CGs.

I believe you're right that the only answer is finding the right medication. It's the result of brain damage and screwed-up brain chemistry, nothing "situational."

But we're all so biologically programmed to respond on high alert to tears that this must make it just that much more challenging to be a CG in this setting.

My mother has this...it was a new term for us..as a result/diagnosis of a pschciatric evaluation a few months ago...I will check the meds..to see which one was used to help with this..it is heartbreaking to see..
sandie

quote:

Originally posted by SandiesMom:
My mother has this...it was a new term for us..as a result/diagnosis of a pschciatric evaluation a few months ago...I will check the meds..to see which one was used to help with this..it is heartbreaking to see..
sandie

OMG Sandie..I am so glad to hear from you. I thought we were going to be alone in this trauma. I am so sorry to know that your mom is suffering also. Please tell me there is hope and relief for her in the near future..??

And yes, Grassflower, it is extremely challenging for us. I think my co-worker and I spend more time lately trying to hold her, wipe away her tears and keeping her happy than we do with our every day chores. It is taking an emotional toll on us as well....

Caralot,

I just put another post to the top of the page, I think they're talking about the same type of behavior. It's titled "Hysterical Crying".

Mom never got hysterical, but she did go through a time when she would cry once in a while...maybe once or twice a day. The doctor put her on 10 mg of Lexapro. It helped for a while, then she needed a little more, 20 mg. She seemed fine once we got to the 20 mg/Day, and it didn't make her sleepy or anything.

Felicia

Sorry Caralot,

What you describe is not emotional Lability.

emotional lability,
a condition of excessive emotional reactions and frequent mood changes.

Lability, as seen in dementia: emotions are very shallow and changeable.

What you describe sounds more like depression. I suspect that the doctor should prescribe an antidepressant. If a standard SSRI, dementia doctors will use Effexor, an SSRI plus.

I forgot to say that Lexapro is an anti-depressant.

Felicia

quote:

Originally posted by Norbert:
Sorry Caralot,

What you describe is not emotional Lability.

emotional lability,
a condition of excessive emotional reactions and frequent mood changes.

Lability, as seen in dementia: emotions are very shallow and changeable.

What you describe sounds more like depression. I suspect that the doctor should prescribe an antidepressant. If a standard SSRI, dementia doctors will use Effexor, an SSRI plus.

Well Dr. Norbert, I am not a licensed geriatric psychiatrist and that was his diagnosis. What I copied and pasted was the definition of Labile effect (emotional incontinence aka emotional lability) which talks about uncontrollable laughing or crying.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labile_affect

I will leave the treatment up to the doctor. I am just looking for support here....

QUOTE]Originally posted by Felicia:
Caralot,

I just put another post to the top of the page, I think they're talking about the same type of behavior. It's titled "Hysterical Crying".

Mom never got hysterical, but she did go through a time when she would cry once in a while...maybe once or twice a day. The doctor put her on 10 mg of Lexapro. It helped for a while, then she needed a little more, 20 mg. She seemed fine once we got to the 20 mg/Day, and it didn't make her sleepy or anything.

Felicia[/QUOTE]

This is not hysterical crying, but a sad constant stream of tears that can continue to flow for hours if we don't do something to stop it. Sometimes we can even make her laugh while the tears are flowing. Usually putting on her favorite DVD's will stop it immediately because she gets distracted and as long as they are playing she is okay. She will be laughing up a storm while the DVS' are playing. But the minute they are finished and there is a moment of quiet, she will sink into this place where the tears start to flow again and we have to work to stop it. Other times she will just get up from watching her movies and start crying. If you ask her what is wrong, she doesn't know. Sometimes she will come out and ask for a hug and start to sob.

Today I had a better day as I was able to put a check on it each time it got started. I felt like a beast each time I told her "oh, no....no crying today...it is going to be a happy day today." The tears flowed for a few minutes, I put on some DVD's and she watched them. She either laughed or slept most of the day. She did however, sob through lunch. Needless to say, you don't eat much while you are crying.

She went through a period of depression but did not do much crying during that time. She was just sad and lifeless. This is so different. I never thought a person could have so many tears...it is a good thing she drinks a lot of water...LOL

We pray this will end soon for her...

Caralot,
I am sorry you took offense.

You may want to research the term “emotional lability” on the web, looking for medical articles.

Such as:
http://www.health.qld.gov.au/a...our_mgt/lability.pdf

Emotional lability refers to rapid, often exaggerated changes in mood, where strong
emotions or feelings (uncontrollable laughing or crying, or heightened irritability or
temper) occur. These very strong emotions are sometimes expressed in a way that is not
related to the person’s emotional state.

http://www.medterms.com/script...asp?articlekey=13310
Labile: Unstable, unsteady, not fixed.

The usual key element of lability is the changeable unsteady aspect. The concept that the crying does not reflect actual emotional state however, may fit your situation.

Your wikipedia article does say that the usual treatment for emotional lability is use of an antidepressant.

Norbert

Again, I will leave the treatment up to the trained individual working with my LO. She is on an antidepressant, but it is not my call to tell anyone what to prescribe for her. As a geriatric psychiatrist who specializes in AD, her doctor is the expert in these matters and the family trusts his judgement.

I have been researching emotional incontinence (aka emotional lability) and I don't pretend to be an expert on the subject. I just posted the definition I did to help others to understand what it is.

I don't want to get into a heated debate on the subject....I just want support

Thank you for you input....

It appears that this may be "Pathological Laughter"

Emotional incontinence (EI) is a perturbing condition characterized by uncontrollable outbursts of exaggerated, involuntary facial expressions and pathological crying or laughter. There is increasing evidence that serotonergic neurotransmission may be damaged in EI. The authors report 4 pathological crying cases (3 poststroke and 1 with multiple sclerosis) and 1 case of pathological laughter after traumatic brain injury. EI improved dramatically with three different selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (fluoxetine, sertraline, and paroxetine) in the context of these different CNS diseases.

Pathological laughing and crying (PLC) occur with diverse neurologic conditions. PLC has historically been considered a disturbance of the motor components of affective behavior, rather than a primary emotional disorder.6 Thus Poeck7 emphasized three primary features: 1) sudden loss of voluntary emotional control; 2) occurrence in response to "nonspecific," often inconsequential stimuli; and 3) lack of clear association with prevailing mood state.

This is my last post on this thread, as I do not want to appear arguementative.

As far as support, I know how difficult it is to find solutions to difficult dementia issues. I wish you the best in dealing with this.

With respect,
Norbert

Norbert

Whew...now I am exhausted and going to bed. No hard feelings...

Again...thank you for your input
Good nite

Oops! Sorry. I meant pathological crying.

quote:

emotional lability,
a condition of excessive emotional reactions and frequent mood changes.

Lability, as seen in dementia: emotions are very shallow and changeable.

Maybe Norbert should have a talk with a trained psyciatrist...Emotional Lability IS the correct name/diagnosis!!

Caralot, I will be back with the meds info..they "helped" some...It was just nice to know that the emotional crying had a real term and that she could not control the crying...it came on unexpectantly and Mom told us she did not know why she started/starts crying...happens still but not like it did..very heartbreaking to watch and hear about..sandie

Caralot,

Have you had a psychiatri evaluation performed yet? We "blew it off" many times but when we FINALLY had it done at the insistence of the nrusing home staff, we had the answers/evaluatution and the meds adjustment to help us take care of this...we should have listened to the doctor and done what he asked us in the first place....Sandie

quote:

Originally posted by SandiesMom:
Caralot,

Have you had a psychiatri evaluation performed yet? We "blew it off" many times but when we FINALLY had it done at the insistence of the nrusing home staff, we had the answers/evaluatution and the meds adjustment to help us take care of this...we should have listened to the doctor and done what he asked us in the first place....Sandie

She is under the care of a geriatric psychiatrist who specializes in AD right now who is working to balance her meds. I am so glad to hear your mom has improved. That is what we needed to hear right now as you know, because this is so hearthbreaking to witness. This also came on so suddenly...out of the blue one day.

I agree with your assessment on Norbert's opinions...we are talking with trained doctors, not getting our info from the internet...

Thanks Sandie...I apppreciate you so much

Norbert,
Thanks for posting that information.

Best of luck Caralot. I understand your pain in ways I wish I did not..as with many people on this forum..Sandie

quote:

Originally posted by SandiesMom:
My mother has this...it was a new term for us..as a result/diagnosis of a pschciatric evaluation a few months ago...I will check the meds..to see which one was used to help with this..it is heartbreaking to see..
sandie

Sandie
Just curious...did you ever check on the meds to see which one was used to help with your mom's situation?? I would be interested in knowing.