Laurette fainted in the past in the shower, but we were pretty sure that it was just from excessive heat. We took her to the hospital to have everything checked out just in case, and they concurred. No strokes, no blood pressure issues, no hyper or hypoglycemic tendencies, etc. I made her showers cooler and it seemed to have solved the problem.

Yesterday, though, she fainted for no particular reason while eating breakfast. She was seated and had been for at least a minute. Just prior she was singing a song and showed no signs of anything unusual. She was never quite completely unconscious and after a minute or so she was totally normal again.

The only trigger I can think of is the fact that she sat down. I suppose the fact that she is 90 pounds and hadn't eaten yet may have contributed. Have any of you had experience with fainting, and can it be disease triggered or is it always triggered by another more immediate physical issue? There are few places an 81 year old lady can faint without injury so I want to figure this out somehow. The doctors aren't any help yet because she's fine when they see her.

Any clues?

Although Helen never fainted, she did have a problem with dizzy spells the last year of her life. The doctor never did find a reason for it.

My mother on the other hand would almost pass out after eating. This was caused by a sudden drop in her blood pressure. It would return to normal within the hour. It seems this is a very common problem in the elderly and there is no cure for it.

Have you tried taking her BP when this happens?

Jezza,
The only time Bill had a fainting episode was when his blood pressure fell too low. At that time he was taking BP meds in addition to aricept and namenda. The doctors said that the AD meds worked to lower BP also. They stopped his BP med. and he never had another episode.

There was someone here that ran into the fainting problem but I don't remember who it was. Hopefully whoever it was will see this and get back to you on what they found out.

Hey Jezza, these fainting episodes are common in the elderly, especially in those with lower weight. The most common cause after serious neurological and cardiac issues are ruled out would be due to medication interaction. Is she taking any new meds, or have her medication doses been changed recently? She may have had a hypoglycemic episode, but that usually would not cause her to faint, unless she is diabetic. It could, however, exacerbate some other underlying issue. I remember when my grandmother fainted the first time it was also when we were at the table sitting to eat. She was hunched over with her chin on the table for a few minutes before she passed out. I think being so small and having kyphosis (hunched back) probably caused pressure on vena cava and impinged on the blood flow returning to her heart and therefore her brain, ultimately causing her to faint. This may have been what happened in Laurette's case. Although, being that she has a history of fainting in the shower because of the heat, I would say she has some sort of problem maintaining her sympathetic tone, and probably has a neurological issue contributing to this vasovagal reaction which ultimately causes her to pass out. The only question is whether there is a common trigger that causes this each time. Has she seen a neurologist, and does she have any cardiac issues at all low blood pressure included?

Jezza,
I just now read your post. It's almost midnight here, and I'm just getting ready to turn in. Can't sit here long right now as its time for pain meds and rest. I will get back to you tomorrow. My mom I think is the fainting queen of the forum. I'll tell you a few things, but don't know if will be of any help. It is very scary to see this happen to them.

Jackie

Jezza,

Mom has what is called orthostatic hypotension. If you take her blood pressure sitting its one thing. IF you stand her up right after that the numbers will drop 20 points on the upper and lower readings.

She has fainted after eating, after urinating, after having a bowel movement, after getting up too fast from a sitting position. She has been tested and retested. She had a 30 day event monitor that has showed very little and just age related.

She take Blood pressure meds, but very little, but cannot go without as her BP goes sky high. In fact I just had to increase it by 25mg as she's been more high lately than low.

I have learned the signs now of her fainting, and have been able so far to avoid her passing out completely. She'll start saying she's dizzy and acting kind of out of it. I grab a small lunch bag, and make her breathe in and out of it and that usually helps. If she's sitting in a chair, I try to get her to put her head as close to between her legs as possible. If she's in her recliner I put it in the farthest back position and put a few pillows under her feet. That also will help. Mom has stayed out for as little as 30 seconds to as much as more than a minute. I used to call 911, but by the time they came she was back and nothing was wrong.

I keep amonia inhalers in the family room, kitchen, and taped to the mirrors in the two bathrooms. You can get them at Osco or Walgreens. They have really helped in either her not passing out, just almost, or after passing out coming to much quicker.

When Mom has passed out her eyes are still open, she is completely limp, and its really scary. I had a post on it last year, but forgot what it was. I think you can do a search on it. I think I may have had more details. Google fainting or Syncope, and you'll get tons of info. All the things that Mom has fainted from are on there, and basically there's nothing much that can be done if tests are not showing whats wrong. I could go into more testing that would be a little more invasive, but I choose not to put her through that.

I basically follow Mom whenever she walks. When she gets up from the table, my husband or I are right there. When she goes to the bathroom, I let her have her privacy, but am standing right outside the door. One thing I never want is for her to faint and not be there to break her fall somehow. It sounds like a pain following her everywhere, but if she breaks something, it will be much worse.

So if everything is basically the same with meds and eating etc. it may just be something that is going to start happening. That's how it was with my Mom. The important thing is that she can never be left alone. If Laurette continues to faint or nearly faint, you will eventually know the signs and be able to control it more. But again, get those ammonia inhalers.

Hope this has helped a bit.

Jackie

Thanks so much guys. I'm pretty sure her fainting isn't caused by anything serious. She's old and skinny and so far they have been very rare, so I think (and hope) it's just the kind of syncope that happens in old people just because they're old. Getting old is hard work, isn't it? We have a blood pressure meter here at the house, so I think I'll start checking her pressure from time to time just to see what's going on.