Greetings...

It seeems everyone's reaction to the meds is slightly different...so I thought I would share what we've learned & observed.

Mom was given a sample package of Aricept and also presribed something...maybe it was Risperdahl (spelling?)...as a sleep aid. She was up ALL night! We have cut both meds (until her next doctor appointment) but we're pretty certain it's the Aricept that did it. A co-worker told me Aricept is like caffeine, it sharpens the mind, and all the other "benefits" of a stimulant.

In speaking with the nurse practioner at our last office vist, I asked about trying just Namenda and she advised that Namenda is to be used WITH Aricept. However, after seeing the other postings, apparently it's not the philosophy of all doctors.

So we are back to Square One with my mom...unless I can convince the doctors to try Namenda alone since Aricept made things worse.

I echo your appreciation, George, for this site and everyone's postings...it certainly is helpful!

Regards,

Boofanne

This is my first visit to this board. My mom is newly diagnosed with dementia, she has been through testing, vascular, MRI, etc. She was originally put on ARicept with awful results. She became much more confused and kept saying she was having multiply conversations, over and over again. We discontinued the Aricept and she improved. Recently she was put on Namenda, but experienced the same result. She asked to stop the medication because of the increased confusion. Her doctor cautioned us that most of the medications were mediocre at best, and some people did very poorly on them. Mom seems to be one of them.
I have found the information here very helpful. Has anyone else had a similar experience with no medication being helpful? I'd love to hear from someone with a similar experience. Thanks, Kathy ekinstone@yahoo.com

My husband age 59 is on only Namenda for the Alz. He is other medications for other health problems. He is in stage 5-6, but still working. The Namenda has helped him. He is not as withdrawn, and does function better and remember things better, but the memory is unpredictable. I believe it has made a difference with him and he has no side effects. He is reading the newspaper and commenting on things he reads. This is so unusual since he wasn't even opening the paper up. Just little things I have noticed are better, but not a wonder drug. Good luck.
Barb

Greetings to ekathi...

My mother also had the same experience with Aricept and her doctor advised us that Namenda is to be used in conjunction with Aricept and they will not prescribe it (yet) as the sole & primary med...which is OK with me. Truthfully, I believe my mother is better right now without the meds. After hearing your experience, that reinforces our decision right now. If (or should I say "when") she gets any worse, perhaps we'll have to re-visit that topic.

Thanks for sharing.

Boof

I am so happy to see so many responses to the drug questions. I think if we all start to share our experiences maybe we could find the corrtect drug cocktail some day that might help. My Dad age 79 has stopped taking the aricpet, still takes namenda and has for the last two months been taking a drug called seroquel to help with the paranoia he was experiencing. Every now and then he knows who we are and can communicate. The biggest benefit of the seroquel is that he is no longer scared in his own home or of his own family. He still sees things that are not real but at least they do not scare him! We started taking the seroquel after I read on this site that someone else used it. I asked the Doctor and he was willing to try it. THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO CONTRIBUTES THEIR EXPERIENCES ON THIS SITE IT REALLY DOES MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

quote:

Originally posted by Boofanne:
Greetings to ekathi...

My mother also had the same experience with Aricept and her doctor advised us that Namenda is to be used in conjunction with Aricept and they will not prescribe it (yet) as the sole & primary med...which is OK with me. Truthfully, I believe my mother is better right now without the meds. After hearing your experience, that reinforces our decision right now. If (or should I say "when") she gets any worse, perhaps we'll have to re-visit that topic.

Thanks for sharing.

Boof

My mother was on Aricept and Namenda since January. Her improvement was dramatic. She was not as withdrawn and had much more of her old personality, and seemed to be confused less. Her memory came and went, but even that was an improvement.

A week ago she stopped taking them because she is convinced that they have given her some kind of eye inflammation. There is absolutely no factual basis to tie these together, but you can't tell her that. In a week's time she seems to have lost some of what she gained. We hope to get her back on them soon.

Hi all, I've been reading the string and I want to offer some professional and caregiver insite as I am both.

First I've noticed statements that Namenda is too new for doctors / pharms to know what it does as well as combination therapy w/ cholesterese inhibtors such as Aricept, Exelon, or Reminyl. Namenda (memantine) was discovered by Eli Lilly about 30 years ago, and has been used in the EU as a pain releiver, Parkinson's / momevement disorder Rx and for treatment in Alzheimer's. It've history is well proven in combination therapy, but mono therapy is not real productive. I also want to address some comments of side effects within a few days or weeks of taking a medication, you shouldn't see any improvement or real noticable side effects until about 4 to 6 weeks of taking the Rx. Additionally, hallucinations, agitation, loss of functionality is a part of the disease and this can happen at any time. One day you're able to brush your teeth, the next day it's more difficult. This is completely plausable.

Aricept should be taken first, then namenda should be added. If a person has nightmares with Aricept and taken in the night, it shoudl go to morning or vice versa. If you continue to have issues with ARicept switch to Exelon or Reminyl, but realize they also have Gastro side effects, and are the same class as Aricept.

The reason why you have Aricept and Namenda is they awork on different areas of the brain. Within the micro areas where neuro transmission occur, both address the flow of certain proteins or chemicals.

In my experience professionally we have seen increased adgitation in some individuals where as their sundowning is more significant. Sometimes more depression is observed.

You'll have to evaluate if you want your loved one happly confused or more aware and adgitated. If they are depressed treat it with a med such as Lexapro, if they have behaviors try Seraquil. A disaster is Namenda Aricept and Resperidol, not good combo either is haldol.

Personally Aricept and Namenda have worked well with my family members affected. I hope this helps you, also as I've told everyone today, try this book Alzheimer's Essentials; Practical Skills for CAregivers, carmapubs.com is where you get it. I got it this past week, my family md told me about it...it is terrific! try it out. it may help with some other questions, it's really comprehensive. All the best! you're doing a great jobQ

Byryr:
When you abruptly stop Aricept or Namenda or together the person will sharply drop in their abilities. You'll find this data all over the internet, I've seen it professionally and personally with my Dad.

The issue is according to the studies is that when someone stops taking the Rx they loose abilities or their prowess for those decrease. Those that are started on the Rx again, never return to the level they were previously before d/c the Rx.

You should put her back on the Rx, if she won't take her meds, try crushing them (if MD okays) and putting it in ice cream, apple sauce, etc. or put them in chocolate. Remember that you have to be creative with this disease! Try that approach. But she'll have better quality of life longer on the Rx than w/out in my opinion. Also try a book, I've mentioned it thorughout my time on the board today, I'm really raviing about it b/c it's the best I've ever read. My family MD told me about it, get it at carmapubs.com it's called Alzheimer's Essentials, Practical Skills for Caregivers. It was very helpful, I'm recommending it to the families / caregivers I work with. It addresses a majority of the issues on this board.

Mim-

quote:

Originally posted by byryr:
My mother was on Aricept and Namenda since January. Her improvement was dramatic. She was not as withdrawn and had much more of her old personality, and seemed to be confused less. Her memory came and went, but even that was an improvement.

A week ago she stopped taking them because she is convinced that they have given her some kind of eye inflammation. There is absolutely no factual basis to tie these together, but you can't tell her that. In a week's time she seems to have lost some of what she gained. We hope to get her back on them soon.

Mim...

Thanks so much for your insightful response and sharing from your personal & professional experience with Aricept/Namenda. Good point about medicine management being a personal decision whether the loved one is happily confused or aware & agitated. I am going to look for the book you recommended...and continue to learn more about this disease.

Thanks again,

Boof

I am wondering if anyone is trying any natural supplements with the namenda and aricept? I have done some reading on huperzine A and Sage oil capsules. Has anyone used any of these natural supplements?

No problem boof, you can get the book at any major book reseller or online, I got mine online...it's really good, puts the 36 hour day to shame, makes it look like war and peace!

good luck!

quote:

Originally posted by Boofanne:
Mim...

Thanks so much for your insightful response and sharing from your personal & professional experience with Aricept/Namenda. Good point about medicine management being a personal decision whether the loved one is happily confused or aware & agitated. I am going to look for the book you recommended...and continue to learn more about this disease.

Thanks again,

Boof

Louann there is no data indicating that these treatments work, I would not mix any herbals with the Rx. Remember the Rx is made of various components and they could be herbs...you may midigate a response that is unpleasent. You should try what is proven as part of the "cocktail" approach: Namenda, Aricept, Vit E, B12, B6, Folic Acid and Omega 3 (fish oil) pills. They work to improve CNS (Central Nervous System Function)...try it! you may like it! also check out a great book I must recommend every time, Alzheimer's Essentials; Practical Skills for Caregivers, it talks about meds and therapies...get at any book store or at carmapubs.com

I came across this forum topic through Google Alerts. I hope you'll welcome this post and our sincere desire to share information that can possibly help overcome difficulties.

Our passion for alternatives to conventional therapies was brought about by the experiences of people close to us and those they personally know. They've been truly inspiring, and we're truly happy and blessed that we've been a part of their journey back to good health.

We've put up a website full of information about such a natural alternative that even conventional doctors now accept as a safe alternative to prescription and over-the-counter drugs.

We're not going to ask you to buy anything. All we want to do is to provide you information that we hope will help you find a better way to address Alzheimer's. It's then up to you what you wish to do with that information.

Please have an open mind, although it's perfectly alright to be a skeptic. Some of those we personally know started off that way (including a close family friend who actually wanted to "prove us wrong" by consulting with her doctor and had a medical exam to get her current health status before using a product based on this fruit).

For a conventional doctor's specific reference to Aricept, go to http://mangosteen-juice-online.com/mangosteen-clinical-experience.html.

For truly inspiring personal stories from those (some were conventional doctors themselves) who benefited from its use, go to http://mangosteen-juice-online.com/mangosteen-testimonials.html.

For actual clinical case studies on this fruit, go to http://mangosteen-juice-online.com/mangosteen-clinical-studies.html.

For published, independent scientific research done on it, go to http://mangosteen-juice-online.com/mangosteen-research.html.


All the best,

Oscar and Mimi

Hi - I am a first time poster, but my dad has been taking aricept for quite some time and it helps, we then added namenda about two years ago, and he seems to do okay with it. However he has had four attacks of sepsis in the past two years, since the the last attack about five months ago he has started having panic attacks that he has sepsis again, so the doctor presribed lexapro which made him kind of giddy so they switched it to paxil. However in reading about paxil and aricept, I have read they counteract each other and the paxil seems to do no good right now. Small doses of xanax .25mg seem to help. Would anyone have any suggestions on how we should try to give dad his dosages of aricpet and namenda? thanks

I will be clear again about my post previously.
HERBALS DO NOT WORK. There is no scientific evidence aside from B12, B6, Folic Acid, Vit. E. I do not believe that there is any reason to post such a message. In fact many of the herbals such as ginko and such.

Aricept, Namenda work well. The herbals do not address the issue of Aceytlecholine or N-methyl-D-aspartate and the abnormal response of glutmatergic action / receptor binding in Alzheimer's.

It's snake oil

dplush:

You're dad should nix the paxil, it's been contraindicated for dementia in the EU and is off the market. It's also not indicated for elderly in many studies. Xanax can cause a rollercoaster effect. I would take him back to the lexapro, giddy isn't bad. It just means he's activated, or hyper. I'd also look at celexa.

Instead of Xanax I'd look to seraquil in very low dose. that should help. I offer a piece of advice on reading, it's staple for me as I loved the book and want to spread the word, talks about these issues. Alzheimer's Essentials; Practical Skills for Caregivers, get it any bookstore! good luck.

Dear Mim,

Thanks for your help. I will get a copy of the book you mentioned.

thanks

Dplush: enjoy I hope it helps you, I know it opened up a real understanding that I didn't have before. I really like it....just don't want people to think I'm spamming....it's just a great resource we all should know about.

My Dad experienced paranoia and hallucinations and started to become violent. He was on both Aricept and Namenda we asked the Dr for Seraquil and it really helped! He is much calmer with no side effects! He has been on it for three months. It takes awhile to get the correct dosage. When he first tried it he slept to much we just needed to cut the dosage.

quote:

Originally posted by Mim:
dplush:

You're dad should nix the paxil, it's been contraindicated for dementia in the EU and is off the market. It's also not indicated for elderly in many studies. Xanax can cause a rollercoaster effect. I would take him back to the lexapro, giddy isn't bad. It just means he's activated, or hyper. I'd also look at celexa.

Instead of Xanax I'd look to seraquil in very low dose. that should help. I offer a piece of advice on reading, it's staple for me as I loved the book and want to spread the word, talks about these issues. Alzheimer's Essentials; Practical Skills for Caregivers, get it any bookstore! good luck.

thanks Louann :-)!

Mim: I am a first timer and read your comment in July that "A disaster is Namenda Aricept and Resperidol". Why do you say this? My mother started Aricept six months ago when the geriatric psych that had been treating her for 8 years accepted that she was having memory loss. Although we could see no improvement in memory or even a slowing of the memory losses, she was having no adverse effects from the Aricept so she has remained on it. The Aricept was added to her existing meds, Remeron, Trazodone, and Klonipin. Recently she had to spend a week in a hospital's geriatric behavoral health facility and the hospital's psych doc removed the Remeron and added Respiridol and Namenda. So your comment that this could be a disaster concerns me. Can you elaborate?

Sure: Aricept and Namenda are not the disaster. It's the Resperidol that is, it increases fall risk and often can adgigtate someone..it's really good for auditory hallucinations but not for behaviorial control. I'm not surprised to hear that a psych did this. I am a nurse and have 3 members of my family with the disease, I work in LTR and I see this all the time. I also speak on AD / teach, we at our facilities do not use Resperidol b/c of the risks. Also there are some black box warnings on Respierdol I'd look at on FDA.gov.

Why did the doctor remove the Aricept? If he did certainly she will decline, you will not see Aricept working which is great! they are maintaining!

But that said if this is working for her leave her be for now. But I have not seen many people respond very well to the treatments you mentioned aside from Traz, Aricept / Namdenda.

Seraquil or Depokote are good in low dose for behaviors. But part of my questions is did the doctors look for a UTI or enviornmental or social triggers for the behaviors?

Many times psychs add meds just b/c they can. My suggestions also is you seek an Alzheimer's specialist call your local AD Assoc. they can help.

Did I elobrate or do you need some clarification...let me know! good luck!

Mim: Did not mean to imply that Aricept was removed. She is still on Aricept, Trazodone, and Klonopin, and she is now titrating Namenda in 5mg increases over 4 weeks. Only Remeron was removed cold turkey and substituted with 10mg Lexapro which I forgot to mention before. There had been a UTI but it was treated. The 0.5mg Risperdal was added for paranoia/dementia psychosis, but does not seem to result in correcting the behavioral problem. I have seen the FDA warning on atypical antipsychotics such as Risperdal and Seroquel meds due to cerebrovascular adverse effects, etc, but the traditional meds had an even higher incidence of adverse effects, so what is the option? The doc is head of a geriatric behavioral health center at a respected hospital so it is difficult to question his actions. Geriatric psych doc she had been seeing for 8 years is hesitant to suggest that Risperdal and Lexapro are not appropriate. He might not have treated with the same meds, but the hospital doc's actions are not "wrong", just a different approach.

This is my first time having to deal with a dementia/AD situation and it gets so frustrating having to accept vague assurances of effectiveness of different meds, different levels of care in different assisted living facilities, uncertain or conflicting diagnoses, etc. When it was first an anxiety disorder, Buspar worked fine until it developed into depression and then Remeron, Trazodone, and Klonopin worked fine. But now that it is dementia/AD, the whole situation becomes so unclear it often makes me depressed and angry. I don't want to accept the uncertainty that seems to be inherent in the situation. Any other info you can provide would be appreciated.