🎵 “Sundown” – EOA When the Sun Goes Down and Everything Changes (Gordon Lightfoot)
Updated: Jul 12
🎵 “Sundown, you better take care…”
And honestly?
If you’re caring for someone with Alzheimer’s or dementia…
👉 7pm can feel like entering another dimension.
One minute things seem manageable.
Then:
The pacing starts
The agitation kicks in
The confusion increases
The refrigerator opens 17 times
The muttering begins
The anxiety rises
The wandering starts
The repetitive questions return
And you’re standing there exhausted thinking:
👉 “What just happened?”
Welcome to:
Sundowning
🧠 WHAT IS SUNDOWNING?
Sundowning is:
👉 Increased confusion, anxiety, agitation, restlessness, or behavioral changes occurring later in the day or evening.
Usually:👉 Late afternoon into nighttime
Many caregivers describe it as:
👉 “The switch flips around or after dinner time.”
🌙 WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE?
Every person is different, but common signs include:
✔️ Pacing
✔️ Wandering
✔️ Repetitive behaviors and words
✔️ Increased anxiety
✔️ Agitation or anger
✔️ Mumbling or word salad worsening
✔️ Looking for “home”
✔️ Confusion about time
✔️ Obsessive routines
✔️ Opening/closing cabinets or fridge repeatedly
✔️ Sleep refusal
✔️ Shadowing caregiver constantly (jump scare on some days, he's sneaky)
💔 WHAT IT LOOKED LIKE IN OUR HOUSE
For us:
👉 Around 6:30–7pm the energy changes completely.
You can almost feel it building.
He:
Wanders
Looks in the fridge repeatedly
Gets anxious if routine changes
Becomes hyper-focused on random things
Starts mumbling more
Communication worsens
Gets restless and unsettled
becomes agitated
And honestly?
👉 It can completely drain the caregiver by nighttime.
🧠 WHY DOES SUNDOWNING HAPPEN?
Doctors believe several things contribute:
Brain changes affecting body clock/circadian rhythm
Fatigue/exhaustion
Low lighting/shadows
Hunger/dehydration
Overstimulation during the day
Anxiety
Poor sleep patterns
Difficulty processing evening transitions
⚠️ WHAT STAGE DOES SUNDOWNING START?
It can appear:
👉 Earlier than people expect
But becomes more common in:
Mid-stage Alzheimer’s
Stage 4–6 typically
For many EOA spouses:
👉 Stage 5 is where it becomes VERY noticeable.
😔 WHY EVENINGS ARE SO HARD FOR CAREGIVERS
Because honestly?
👉 YOU are exhausted too by then.
You’ve already:
Managed the day
Cooked
Redirected behaviors
Worked
Cleaned
Monitored medications
Repeated yourself 100 times
Then just when YOU are empty:
👉 Sundown starts.
💡 WHAT HELPED US MOST
Not curing it.
Just:
👉 Reducing the chaos around it.
✔️ KEEP ROUTINE VERY PREDICTABLE (Cue up the movie-- Rain Man to remember how real this is now)
This matters HUGE.
Dinner:
👉 Same time
Showers:
👉 Same routine
TV:
👉 Familiar shows
Lighting:
👉 Consistent
Unexpected evening plans?
👉 Usually bad idea for us now.
✔️ REDUCE STIMULATION
Evenings are NOT the time for:
Big crowds
Loud restaurants
Long outings
Complicated social events
Too much stimulation earlier in the day often means:
👉 Worse evenings.
✔️ IMPROVE LIGHTING
Shadows can increase confusion/anxiety.
We found:
👉 Warm lighting helps a LOT. (All my bulbs are now "soft"
✔️ LIMIT LATE CAFFEINE & SUGAR
Especially if anxiety/agitation already exists.
✔️ AFTERNOON REST HELPS
Missing naps or downtime?
👉 HUGE trigger for us.
✔️ PHYSICAL ACTIVITY EARLIER IN THE DAY
Walking.
Biking.
Exercise.
Helps burn off:
👉 Restless energy.
⚠️ SAFETY ISSUES DURING SUNDOWNING
This part matters.
Sundowning increases risk for:
Wandering
Falls
Aggression
Leaving the house
Medication confusion
Kitchen accidents
Urinating in weird places
💡 THINGS TO CONSIDER
✔️ Door alarms
✔️ Cameras
✔️ Medical ID bracelet
✔️ Night lights
✔️ Simplified evening routines
✔️ Camera's on in house
✔️ Locks like "Kwickset" that notify you when a door to outside opens.
Kwickset Halo Lock (Aura works too) https://a.co/d/056jpa1P
💊 CAN MEDICATION HELP?
Sometimes yes.
But this is VERY individualized.
🩺 TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR ABOUT:
Increased evening agitation
Anxiety
Sleep disruption
Wandering
Aggression
Hallucinations/paranoia
💊 MEDICATIONS DOCTORS MAY DISCUSS
Depending on symptoms:
Anxiety medications
Sleep medications
Antidepressants
Medication timing adjustments
Dementia medications
⚠️ IMPORTANT
Some medications can:
👉 WORSEN confusion or increase fall risk
So NEVER self-adjust without guidance.
🧠 WHEN TO SEEK MEDICAL HELP QUICKLY
Call doctor sooner if you notice:
Sudden severe behavior changes
Hallucinations
Aggression
New wandering
Major sleep changes
Rapid confusion increase
Because infections, medication changes, dehydration, or other illnesses can worsen symptoms FAST.
📚 GOOD RESOURCES
National Institute on Aging – Sundowning & Alzheimer’s
💔 THE HARDEST PART
Sometimes your spouse:
👉 Truly cannot settle
And no matter what you try:
The pacing continues
The anxiety continues
The questions continue
And caregivers end up:
👉 Completely emotionally depleted by nighttime.
🧠 WHAT I’VE LEARNED
Sundowning is not:
❌ Them being difficult
❌ Intentional behavior
❌ Bad attitude
It’s:👉 Brain fatigue and neurological change
🎵 Why “Sundown”
Because every caregiver eventually recognizes:
👉 The sun going down changes everything.
And evenings become something you mentally prepare for every single day.
💭 Final Thought
If evenings feel impossible sometimes:
👉 You are not failing.
Sundowning is one of the most exhausting parts of dementia caregiving.
Routine.
Patience.
Medical support.
And sometimes simply surviving the evening one hour at a time…
That’s enough.
💬 Disclaimer
I’m not a doctor, lawyer, therapist, or expert—just a wife trying to figure this out one day at a time. Everything shared here is based on our experience and things that have helped us along the way. Take what helps, leave what doesn’t, and always check with professionals when needed. I also use AI to help clean up my writing, organize thoughts, and pull together resources because honestly… caregiver brains are tired too. If something here helps another family feel less alone, then it’s worth sharing.
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