What To Expect As Alzheimer’s Progresses

September 9, 2022

0

Initial Causes What To Expect As Alzheimers Progresses

7 Stages of Dementia – What to expect as the disease progresses

There are several different causes of memory loss. Some cause this condition in the young, while others may be more gradual. If you notice that your memory is weakening, its important to consult a medical professional. Whether the cause is mental illness, age, or a combination of factors, its important to seek treatment as soon as possible. People with extensive memory loss may have social difficulties and anxiety, which can lead to depression. They may be afraid they are letting their loved ones down, which can lead to anxiety and depression. What to Expect as Alzheimers Progresses

Fortunately, there are many causes of memory loss, and many of them are treatable. However, if you are experiencing serious memory problems, you may need medical treatment. If you have been undergoing any type of medication, you should consult with your doctor. Some people have other underlying conditions that may be causing their loss of memory. Alcohol abuse, sleep deprivation, or other mental health conditions can cause memory problems. You should seek out a medical professional if you suspect youre suffering from any of these conditions.

How To Find Help For Caregiving

As the person moves through the stages of Alzheimer’s, he or she will need more care. You may not be able to meet all his or her needs at home anymore. It’s important to know your limits, take care of yourself, and to seek help whenever you need it. Learn more about getting help with Alzheimer’s caregiving and finding ways to care for yourself. If caring for the person has become too much for you, you can also learn more about finding long-term care for a person with Alzheimer’s.

What Do We Mean By Stages Of Dementia

There are many different types of dementia and all of them are progressive. This means symptoms may be relatively mild at first but they get worse with time, usually over several years. These include problems with memory, thinking, problem-solving or language, and often changes in emotions, perception or behaviour.

As dementia progresses, a person will need more help and, at some point, will need a lot of support with daily living. However, dementia is different for everyone, so it will vary how soon this happens and the type of support needed.

It can be helpful to think of there being three stages of dementia:

These are sometimes called mild, moderate and severe, because this describes how much the symptoms affect a person.

These stages can be used to understand how dementia is likely to change over time, and to help people prepare for the future. The stages also act as a guide to when certain treatments, such as medicines for Alzheimers disease, are likely to work best.

You May Like: Can You Get Dementia At 40

How Do You Know What Stage Of Alzheimer’s Disease A Loved One Is In

The stages of Alzheimers disease presented in this post offer a reasonable framework from which to observe symptoms and understand the progression of the disease. Since there is no medical consensus for Alzheimers stages, as there is with cancer, it is important for caregivers to be aware of the individual symptoms and situation that their patient or loved one is experiencing. While healthcare providers may refer to a patients condition as late or early stage, any specific stage is less important than the context and understanding of what this means for care going forward.

How Is An Rpd Diagnosed

RPD can be difficult to diagnose, so it is often necessary to see a doctor who specializes in these conditions. The doctor might ask about the patients progression of symptoms, any similar illnesses in biological relatives or any recent possible exposures . The doctor may request some laboratory testing, such as blood, urine and cerebrospinal fluid brain imaging and/or an electroencephalogram . The information gathered by the physician and tests might help to determine the cause of disease.

Recommended Reading: How To Help Dementia Patients Sleep At Night

Alzheimers Disease Stages And How They Progress

How Alzheimers progresses can be very unique to each person, but you can recognize the general stages with this guide.Getty Images

Alzheimers is a progressive disease that damages neurons in the brain, affecting a persons ability to remember, reason, judge, use language, and otherwise meet the demands of daily life.

While there are treatments that can help sharpen the mind for a short while and make behavioral symptoms more manageable, there is currently no cure.

In a typical case, Alzheimers first destroys neurons and their connections in parts of the brain that retain memories, including the entorhinal cortex and hippocampus.

Later the disease causes damage to regions in the cerebral cortex that control language, reasoning, and social behavior. Eventually many other parts of the brain are affected.

Ultimately the disease is fatal. On average people with Alzheimers live for four to eight years after diagnosis, although some can live as long as 20 years depending on other factors.

More than one-half of all Alzheimers-related deaths are caused by respiratory system diseases, such as pneumonia, an infection that can develop when swallowing issues result in food and liquid entering the lungs.

Every person with Alzheimers will experience the disease in a different way. Some retain their cognitive abilities for longer than expected, while others move more quickly through the various stages.

How Does Alzheimers Impact Life Expectancy

According to a study, the key factors that determine how long someone lives after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia are gender, age, and level of disability:

While men lived approximately 4.1 years following diagnosis, women lived approximately 4.6 years.
When someone who is over the age of 90 is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, they live 3.8 years. In contrast, someone under the age of 70 lived 10.7 years.
If a patient was frail when they were diagnosed, they didn’t live as long even after the adjustment for age has been made.

In the end, the average survival time for those diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia was 4.5 years.

Read Also: Lion’s Mane Alzheimer’s

What To Expect In The Late Stages Of Alzheimers Disease

What to Expect in the Late Stages of Alzheimers Disease

As Alzheimers advances into the later stages, caregivers and family members can expect quite a few new symptoms of the disease. Fortunately, being prepared now can help people better cope with the challenges of the late stages of Alzheimers.

Although the disease doesnt affect every person the same way, informed caregivers can often reduce later stage crisis. Read our list of the symptoms to expect in the late stages of Alzheimers to better prepare for tomorrow, today.

Why Does Dementia Get Worse Over Time

Journey Through Alzheimers: Late Stages

There are many different kinds of dementia. Alzheimers disease, vascular dementia, frontotemporal dementia, and dementia with Lewy bodies are a few examples of different types of dementia.

In the early stages of dementia of any kind, a small portion of the affected individuals brain is destroyed. In this stage, a person experiences fewer symptoms since the injured area of the brain is responsible for affecting just the abilities dependent on that part of the brain. As a result, these initial symptoms are often rather mild in their manifestation.

Because of this, the term mild dementia is commonly used to describe the early stages of dementia.

In the early stages, the region of the brain that is affected by dementia differs depending on the kind of dementia. Because of this, the symptoms of the various varieties will be varied. For instance, memory loss is somewhat prevalent in the early stages of Alzheimers disease but extremely rare in the early stages of frontotemporal dementia.

As a persons dementia advances into its middle and later stages, the signs of the various types of dementia tend to become increasingly interchangeable. This is due to the fact that when dementia worsens, a greater portion of the brain is affected.

The condition will eventually cause severe damage to most of the brains areas. This results in significant shifts in all elements of ones memory, thinking, language, emotions, and behavior, in addition to causing health issues.

Recommended Reading: How To Interact With Dementia Patients

What To Do About Body Jerking

Sudden twitching or jerking, known as myoclonus, is another condition that sometimes happens with Alzheimer’s. The person’s arms, legs, or whole body may jerk. This can look like a seizure, but the person doesn’t pass out. Tell the doctor right away if you see these signs. The doctor may prescribe one or more medicines to help reduce symptoms.

Read about this topic in Spanish. Lea sobre este tema en español.

Late Stages Of Alzheimers Disease Symptoms

The needs of the person with Alzheimers become much more demanding as the disease progresses. In the late stages of Alzheimers, the person with the disease loses the ability to respond appropriately and is unable to converse with others. They will also develop an inability to control movements like sitting, standing and walking.

Here are some other common symptoms of the disease that can occur:

Catches colds and infections easily
Day/night reversal of sleep pattern
Difficulty communicating
Difficulty using the toilet independently
Eventually requires help with activities of daily living, 24 hours per day
Eventually unable to walk
Hoarding, rummaging
Inability to sit and eventually to swallow
Loss of awareness of surroundings
Needs help walking
Needs progressively more help with personal care
Personality changes such as aggression, anxiety, hostility, irritability or uncooperativeness
Repetitive questioning
Verbally aggressive or demanding behavior

Also Check: Is Wine Good For Alzheimer’s

Stage : Age Associated Memory Impairment

This stage features occasional lapses of memory most frequently seen in:

Forgetting where one has placed an object
Forgetting names that were once very familiar

Oftentimes, this mild decline in memory is merely normal age-related cognitive decline, but it can also be one of the earliest signs of degenerative dementia. At this stage, signs are still virtually undetectable through clinical testing. Concern for early onset of dementia should arise with respect to other symptoms.

What To Expect As Alzheimers Progresses

Senior Care in Spokane WA: What to Expect as Alzheimers Progresses

If Julies story sounds familiar, you may be trying to learn everything you can about Alzheimers disease and how it progresses. Though some experts describe Alzheimers as having five stages, some three, and still others seven, all of them agree that it progresses in stages. The experience is different for everyone, but the general progression is the same.

General Stages of Alzheimers Disease.

The Alzheimers Association describes three general stages of the disease, starting with the mild stage, which begins after people are aware of the disease. However, the Mayo Clinic describes five stages, beginning before the disease is diagnosed. The stages described by the Mayo Clinic are:

How quickly an individual progresses through the stages varies. The average life expectancy after diagnosis is eight to ten years. However, some people live for 20 years or more.

Getting Help.

Recommended Reading: Home Security For Alzheimer Patients

Stage : Moderate Cognitive Declinemild Dementia

The diagnosis of Alzheimers disease can be made with considerable accuracy in this stage. The most common functioning deficit in these persons is a decreased ability to manage instrumental activities of daily life, which may hinder their ability to live independently. For the stage 4 person, this may become evident in the form of difficulties in paying rent and other bills, not being able to write out checks with the correct date or amount without assistance the inability to market for personal items and groceries or order from a menu in a restaurant. Persons who previously prepared meals for family members and/or guests begin to manifest decreased performance in these skills.

Symptoms of memory loss also become evident in this stage. For example, seemingly major recent events, such as a holiday or visit with a relative may not be remembered. Obvious mistakes in remembering the day of the week, month or season of the year may occur.

Persons at this stage can still generally recall their correct current address they can usually correctly remember the weather conditions outside. Significant current events, including the name of a prominent head of state, will likely be recalled easily. Despite the obvious deficits in cognition, persons at this stage can still potentially survive independently in community settings.

> > > Best Memory Loss Solution Available

If youre experiencing memory loss, you should go to a doctor. Your doctor will perform a physical exam and ask about your symptoms. He or she will also ask you about your medication and any stress youre experiencing. After the exam, he or she will likely ask you to make an appointment with a neuropsychologist. If youre unable to recall the details of your doctor, you may want to consult another healthcare provider.

Also Check: Did Reagan Have Alzheimer’s In Office

Stage One: Early Alzheimers

In the beginning stages of Alzheimers the person is unaware that they have the disease. The symptoms that they experience are commonly associated with the natural aging process and are not usually noticeable by family or healthcare providers. This is referred to as Preclinical Alzheimers Disease.

During this stage, the person is usually functioning independently still. He or she will likely still be driving, working, and participating in social activities. The person may notice during this time that theyre experiencing memory lapses like forgetting a name, familiar word, or the location of everyday items.

Some of the most common signs during this very first stage of the disease include:

Difficulty thinking of the right name or word.
Trouble remembering the name of people.
Difficulty performing normal tasks in a work or social setting.
Losing or misplacing an object of value.
Trouble getting organized or planning things out.

Late Stage Alzheimers Care

âStages of Dementia and What to Expect,â? Rachel N. Hart, D.O.

The needs of Alzheimers patients change considerably during the final stages of the disease. Their physical and mental decline accelerates, leaving them dependent on their caregivers. Patients have to be monitored round the clock, with family members watching their own health to guard against burnout and exhaustion.

But regardless of the difficulties, there will still be bright and welcome moments. Even in late stage Alzheimers, it is possible to express your feelings and create happy memories to hold onto after the disease has reached its end.

Jose Escobar is the Hospice Executive for Parentis Health. He works with patients and families across Southern California, providing support and education, in order to alleviate the pain and suffering of chronic and terminal illness.

Don’t Miss: Is Forgetting Names A Sign Of Early Dementia

Adjusting To The Progression Of Alzheimers Disease

Adjusting to the Progression of Alzheimers Disease

First, there is the initial shock of the Alzheimers diagnosis. Your parent has the disease now and you have no idea what to expect. While you come to terms with the new reality of your parents illness, you will undoubtedly have questions about what is to come.

What Causes Alzheimers Disease

Apart from the few people with familial Alzheimers disease, it is not known why some people develop Alzheimers disease and others do not.

Health and lifestyle factors that may contribute to the development of Alzheimers disease include:

physical inactivity

changes in ability to plan, problem solve, organise and think logically
taking longer to do routine tasks
language and comprehension difficulties, such as problems finding the right word
increasing disorientation in time, place and person
problems in becoming motivated and initiating tasks
changes in behaviour, personality and mood.

Someone experiencing symptoms may be unable to recognise any changes in themselves. Often a family member or friend of someone affected will observe changes in a person.

Symptoms vary as the condition progresses and as different areas of the brain are affected. A persons abilities may fluctuate from day to day, or even within the same day. Symptoms can worsen in times of stress, fatigue or ill-health.

> > > 1tsp Of This Powder Stops Brain Fog And Rejuvenates Brain Cells

Eating a healthy diet is an excellent memory loss remedy. It should consist of fruits and vegetables, as well as whole grains and low-fat proteins. Avoid alcohol and drugs, which can also cause confusion and memory loss. Its important to follow your doctors recommendations, and review your medications regularly. If you suspect a medical condition, you may want to consult a medical professional for a diagnosis and treatment. This way, a physician can prescribe the right medication. What to Expect as Alzheimers Progresses

Eating a healthy diet is an effective memory loss remedy. A diet rich in fruits and vegetables can improve your memory. A balanced diet can also help you to retain information longer. Try to consume at least five servings of these foods a day. The berries contain anthocyanins and flavonoids, which can be very helpful in fighting memory loss. A study of 16,000 women found that those who ate more berries were less likely to suffer from cognitive decline. Turmeric root contains a substance called curcumin, which is found in high concentrations. This compound is a powerful antioxidant that has anti-inflammatory effects.

Stage : Very Mild Decline

The senior may notice minor memory problems or lose things around the house, although not to the point where the memory loss can easily be distinguished from normal age-related memory loss. The person will still do well on memory tests and the disease is unlikely to be detected by loved ones or physicians.

Don’t Miss: Will We Ever Find A Cure For Alzheimer’s

Stages Of Alzheimers Disease

Some features of Alzheimers disease are commonly classified into three stages, or phases. Not all these features will be present in every person, and they might occur at different stages.

Mild Alzheimers disease

Sometimes this stage is only apparent in hindsight. The onset of Alzheimers disease is usually gradual and it is often impossible to identify exactly when it began.

Someone might:

have difficulty shopping or preparing meals.

Moderate Alzheimers disease

At this stage, the impacts of the condition are more apparent and prevalent. A person may experience significant challenges to their independence and require daily support.