My 96yo mother is hallucinating about people being in the house, moving things around and giving her injections. She lives alone, does not want anyone in the house to help and is adamant about staying in her home and alone even though she is afraid. What to do when a LO refuses any help?
Hallucinations are nothing to fool with. Your mother needs to be safeguarded, preferably in a locked dementia unit.
If this is new behavior be sure to check for a UTI.
Some people live for years with auditory hallucinations, I know two personally and neither is caused by dementia. Google auditory hallucinations and it might give you a hint of which direction to go on checking it out. As they are stressful to her she should try to find relief. It could be a medication or beginnings of some sort of illness. For sure her sleep must be disturbed.
You cannot force your LO to accept help. That's a hard reality to which you will have to reconcile.
Suggestion: In writing, offer your mother a list of names & numbers of who can help her. For example: Meals on Wheels, a How-To on setting up pharmacy delivery, so-and-so who will wash/dry her clothes, etc. Insurance companies or her city can provide transportation to her doctors' appointments.
List what you are willing to do, like, every Saturday maybe you will do her laundry, clean her bathroom.
Give your mother the freedom to make decisions for herself. To force the issue may only serve to distance her from you and cause resentment.
All you can do is offer help. But you will need to step back and let mom be the master of her life. Hard to accept because we worry for our loved ones.
Contact her doctor and describe what you have told us. Mom needs an evaluation, and you should prepare for the next step. That’s going to be 24/7 care, maybe medication, and a big change for her. I’m sorry this is happening and wish you the best of luck.