Another Sleepless Night

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Another Sleepless Night

I lay awake in bed last night

With too much on my mind

I tossed and turned for hours on end

But sleep I couldn’t find

Too many thoughts about my mum

And what she’s going through

I feel completely helpless

As there’s nothing I can do

I try to think of happy times

The mum that she once was

And not this person I now see

Who looks so scared and lost

Her eyes have lost their sparkle

They just stare into space

She doesn’t seem to know I’m there

Or recognise my face

So I cry in to my pillow

Like so many nights before

And try to keep from thinking

What the future has in store

Irene Mackay

When a loved one has dementia, there are difficult times – especially in the quiet of a sleepless night, when resistance is low. I wrote this poem about my feelings at such a time, thinking about how my Mum’s condition is deteriorating.

How do you handle those dark moments before dawn?

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