Psychomotor agitation is a condition where a person repeats unnecessary activities, often observed in anxiety, depression, mania, or dementia. Medications and antipsychotic drugs can contribute to this condition, and treatment may involve a combination of non-drug therapies and medication appropriate for the underlying condition. Special safeguards must be in place for older adults with limited mobility who may not recognize danger.
Sometimes, when mental distress is great, as can happen with significant anxiety, depression, or mania, a person responds with a condition called psychomotor agitation. This can take many forms, but is often easily observed. The person may keep repeating an unnecessary activity: hand wringing, foot stamping, leg shaking, constantly pacing a room, or starting and stopping any form of activity over and over again. It is as if these movements are an attempt to deal with the underlying emotional distress, but they are not helping, which may only increase the agitation.
One of the conditions most commonly associated with these movements is a form of depression called agitated depression. The main feature of this condition may be the inability to stop moving certain parts of the body, although related features are that the person may suffer from recurring and obsessive thoughts. Similarly, many believe that psychomotor agitation may be present in the hypomanic or manic phase of bipolar disorder.
Some medications can contribute to this condition. Many drugs, including many of the newer atypical antipsychotics, can cause akathisia or inner restlessness as a symptom. It is not a leap when the inside becomes the outside, and a person shows this through many physical expressions. These can prove not only difficult to bear, but harmful to the person who may, for example, repeatedly scratch their skin until it bleeds. A hypomanic or manic response to the wrong medications could also result in this agitated behavior and is a strong case for bipolar screening individuals considered to have depression.
Another group of people who may suffer from psychomotor agitation are those in various stages of dementia or delirium. In fact, overall, this symptom is much more common in older adults and poses a greater risk for those who have limited mobility issues or don’t understand the risks of any action they take. Special safeguards must be in place to help those with this condition who are also unable to recognize danger to themselves.
There are a number of treatments that could be proposed to address this symptom. In depression, anxiety, or mood disorders, medications appropriate for the underlying condition can greatly reduce symptoms or resolve them completely. Helping an elderly person is much more complex.
Many of the drugs recommended for the treatment of this disease fall into the class of antipsychotic drugs, and some of these drugs have recently been found to significantly increase the risk of death among older people. Other drugs that do not carry this risk may be tried, but it may be accompanied by a combination of non-drug therapies. It is suggested that a thorough assessment of physical health, physical needs, and emotional health and needs be done when experiencing this form of fidgeting, and it may also be helpful in easing some of the fidgeting from the mind.
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