She reduced her mother's medications to a minimum. Side effects may have also played a role in Asayo’s agitation and violence, said Steve Iliffe, professor of Primary Care for Old People at University College London.
She let her mother walk.. “Walking is therapeutic and helps reduce disturbed behavior and sleep,” he said.
“Letting her wander saved us and made us happy,” Akiko said. “It was unbelievably disturbing and stressful to keep my mom in the house.”
Wandering alone, though, remains controversial. Many doctors don’t like the idea that patients are at risk of physical injury. Social workers counter that everything should be done to allow patients to safely do what they want to do.
Read about how this community in Osaka, Japan helped engage and watch out for her mother and became her informal support network
Drugs mentioned in the article - Abilify, Seroquel, Aricept
