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| 7 warning signs to help you identify Alzheimer's disease or dementia. |
How can you tell if a loved one has dementia or Alzheimer’s disease? If mom keeps forgetting where she put her keys or if dad looks confused these days, does this mean they have dementia? Not quite. Only a qualified physician can diagnose a patient with this illness. Memory loss is a common symptom for Alzheimer’s disease, although just because a loved doesn’t remember certain things, it doesn’t mean they’re sick. We all forget things every now and then, whether we’re 25 or 75.
In the beginning, Alzheimer’s manifests in episodes, causing the patient to forget short-term details such as important events or daily activities. Below are the top 7 warning signs to look for to help you identify if your parent may have Alzheimer’s disease or dementia.
1. Misperception and lack of concentration
2. Misplacing things
3. Difficulty performing common tasks
4. Language and speaking issues
5. Issues with basic math
6. Mood swings and changes in personality
7. Changes in personal hygiene
1. Misperception and lack of concentration
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| Confusion is one of the most common signs of Alzheimer's. |
One of the most common signs that a person has Alzheimer’s is becoming confused. If a loved one has difficulties concentrating, performing certain tasks or they take too long to do something, they might have dementia. In the early stages of the disease, the patient starts forgetting important details, and as the condition advances he will start losing any sense of time and space. They might also have troubles remembering the past.
2. Misplacing things
4. Language and speaking issues
It’s common for Alzheimer’s patients to forget words and phrases. At some point, your loved will have language and speaking issues, too; you should be prepared to deal with them. Also, they might use unusual words for certain things, such as ‘hand-clock’ instead of ‘watch’ for example. Stuttering may also interfere with their abilities to have a conversation. In this case, it’s your duty to understand and support them, as well as help them surpass such obstacles.
5. Issues with basic math
All these warning signs should put you on alert. It’s certainly not easy to deal with a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease, but it’s something we can’t control. Do what you can to offer the best possible care, be understanding and ask for professional assistance if you can’t manage on your own.
By Edward Francis and Foresthc.com
Further Reading:
Inside the Dementia Epidemic: A Daughter's Memoir
Dementia - Alzheimer's - Incontinence is a Common Problem
Activities for Seniors with Dementia
15 Home Safety Tips for Care Givers of Dementia Sufferer
Help support this ad free blog by answering several questions about caregiving here. It will take just two minutes.
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| Misplacing things is common for an Alzheimer's patient. |
It’s common for a patient with Alzheimer’s to misplace things in the most unusual places. Losing your keys somewhere around the house happens to all of us, but putting them in the freezer may indicate that your loved one has dementia. Someone in the early stages of Alzheimer’s can misplace things and even accuse others of sealing them if the objects can’t be found in the same place the person who lost them expects them to be.
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| Support your loved one and help them remember. |
3. Difficulty performing common tasks
Alzheimer’s disease changes the brain. This means the disease automatically affects a person’s ability to perform ordinary tasks on a daily basis. If your loved one can’t remember how to drive or cook a favorite dish, it’s a clear sign of dementia. As a devoted member of the family, you must be there for them. Support them to the best of your abilities and help them remember by doing familiar activities such as looking at old photo albums or listening to music.
Alzheimer’s disease changes the brain. This means the disease automatically affects a person’s ability to perform ordinary tasks on a daily basis. If your loved one can’t remember how to drive or cook a favorite dish, it’s a clear sign of dementia. As a devoted member of the family, you must be there for them. Support them to the best of your abilities and help them remember by doing familiar activities such as looking at old photo albums or listening to music.
4. Language and speaking issues
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| Be prepared to deal with language and speaking issues. |
It’s common for Alzheimer’s patients to forget words and phrases. At some point, your loved will have language and speaking issues, too; you should be prepared to deal with them. Also, they might use unusual words for certain things, such as ‘hand-clock’ instead of ‘watch’ for example. Stuttering may also interfere with their abilities to have a conversation. In this case, it’s your duty to understand and support them, as well as help them surpass such obstacles.
5. Issues with basic math
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| Check your loved one's finances. |
Patients who are in the early stages of dementia or Alzheimer’s disease may encounter issues when dealing with numbers. Check their finances to see if they’ve had problems balancing their expenses. If you stumble upon basic math irregularities, maybe it’s time to take over. Leaving aside these standard math issues, Alzheimer’s can affect a patient’s abilities to see properly. As the disease advances, you should expect your relative to start having perception problems, too.
6. Mood swings and changes in personality
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| Exhibiting personality changes is natural for a person suffering from Alzheimer's. |
It’s natural for a person suffering from Alzheimer’s disease to have mood swings and exhibit personality changes. If your parent or close relative becomes overly depressed, fearful, anxious or suspicious, they may have dementia. Shyness and reticence can also be a sign; furthermore, you should be prepared to deal with their mood swings – they can be happy and bubbly, and then become angry and agitated in a split of a second.
7. Changes in personal hygiene
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| Get involved around your loved one's house. |
Declining attention to personal hygiene such as not bathing, changing incontinence products, not brushing teeth or wearing the same clothes for days, may also indicate Alzheimer’s. If your loved one’s home was once clean and tidy, and now it’s a total mess, then once again these are reasons to be concerned. Get more involved and help around the house; make your loved one feel cared for, and thus you’ll help them cope with dementia a lot better.
All these warning signs should put you on alert. It’s certainly not easy to deal with a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease, but it’s something we can’t control. Do what you can to offer the best possible care, be understanding and ask for professional assistance if you can’t manage on your own.
By Edward Francis and Foresthc.com
Further Reading:
Inside the Dementia Epidemic: A Daughter's Memoir
Dementia - Alzheimer's - Incontinence is a Common Problem
Activities for Seniors with Dementia
15 Home Safety Tips for Care Givers of Dementia Sufferer
Help support this ad free blog by answering several questions about caregiving here. It will take just two minutes.
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| Call us. We're here to help. |
About The CareGiver Partnership. The CareGiver Partnership helps caregivers and their loved ones with answers to their caregiving questions, including information about home health care products and supplies, from our Wisconsin-based team of Product Specialists who are all current or former caregivers. The company’s Web site provides the largest online library of resources on subjects most important to caregivers — from arthritis to assisted living, and Parkinson’s to prostate cancer — as well as access to more than 3,000 home care products for incontinence, skin care, mobility, home safety and daily living aids. The CareGiver Partnership was founded in 2004 by Lynn Wilson of Neenah, Wisc. Visithttp://www.caregiverpartnership.com to learn more or call 1-800-985-1353.
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