Dementia is a progressive disease that affects your brain. As the disease progresses, memory loss becomes more severe and other cognitive functions decline. Dementia can affect anyone, regardless of age, race, gender, or socioeconomic status. It’s influenced by many factors, including age and other conditions a person may have.
The course dementia takes can vary widely from person to person; every dementia diagnosis affects everyone differently.
Most people with dementia often experience changes in mood and behaviour. Some experience hallucinations, delusions, agitation, depression, anxiety, apathy, disinhibition, irritability, aberrant motor behaviours, and sleep disturbances. Some people may experience memory loss, while others may lose the ability to communicate.
There are also different types of dementia, each with its own symptoms including Alzheimer’s disease, Vascular dementia, Lewy body dementia, Frontotemporal dementia, Parkinson’s disease dementia, and progressive Supranuclear palsy.
If you notice changes in someone you love, talk to them about it. You both might need to start preparing each other for the future.
In the early stages of dementia, your loved one might be able to maintain their independence and live alone with your help.
Dementia can affect every aspect of daily life, so it is important to prepare and plan. Make sure you have enough money saved for any eventualities. As much as your help will keep them independent, there may come a time when you need to consider getting professional advice. Especially if you feel you’re struggling to cope.
Dementia care varies from person to person too. You’ll see cases of mild dementia symptoms, where they can still communicate and join in with activities. While others may face severe challenges. As the condition progresses, it can become increasingly challenging to cope with.
It is normal to feel overwhelmed when a family member is given a diagnosis of dementia, and a big part of that feeling may come from the fact that you don’t know very much about dementia. Understanding dementia behaviors is a great way for you to understand what people with dementia behaviors are experiencing.
Dementia is a progressive brain disorder that causes problems with memory, thinking, behaviour, emotions, and daily activities.
The first signs of dementia begin when healthy neurons or nerve cells in the brain stop working with other brain cells and die.
Each type of dementia has its own symptoms and treatments. Knowing what kind of dementia your loved one suffers from will help you understand how to best care for them. Knowing about the type of dementia can help you with expectations and future planning. Take each day as it comes, but keep in mind that circumstances can change regularly.
You may find that people living with dementia become unable to walk or handle their personal care. They may have difficulty eating, be vulnerable to infections, struggle to remember things from 45 minutes ago, (but will recall their lives 45 years ago), and are no longer able to express their needs. In some forms of dementia, language abilities are affected such that people have trouble finding the right words or have difficulty speaking. You may feel frustrated or impatient, but it is important to understand that the disease is causing the change in communication skills.
Alzheimer’s disease and dementia do not mean the same thing. They are similar diseases but have some differences.
Alzheimer’s is an irreversible brain condition which causes problems with thinking, remembering and language due to ageing. It usually starts gradually and worsens over time. People who have Alzheimer’s experience changes in personality, mood and behaviour.
Dementia is caused by damage to the brain that affects memory, reasoning, judgment and ability to carry out daily activities.
It is not a single disease. Rather, it is a set of conditions that affect different parts of the brain at different times. These conditions include Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia, Lewy body dementia, frontotemporal dementia, Parkinson’s disease dementia, mixed dementia, corticobasal degeneration, progressive supranuclear palsy, and Huntington’s chorea, and others.Â
The Alzheimer’s Association Safe Return Program requires people with dementia to wear an identification bracelet. It helps ensure that when you return home after visiting friends or relatives, you will be safely returned to your own residence.
Dementia affects an estimated 50 million people worldwide, and the number is expected to double every 20 years due to population ageing.
As dementia advances, it becomes increasingly challenging for families to make decisions. Decisions about what type of treatment the person with dementia needs. Decisions about where to live, how much money to spend on care, and whether to use nursing homes or home care. All these questions are very personal choices, and unique to your circumstances.
But both you and the person with dementia will need support to cope with the symptoms and changes in behaviour. You’ll need to develop strategies and use local resources. For example: asking family members, relatives and friends to help or reaching out to local services for additional care needs.
If you are caring for someone with Alzheimer’s disease or related dementia, your role in managing daily tasks will increase as the disease progresses. Consider practical tips that can help the person with dementia participate as much as possible and enable you to manage tasks effectively.
Making your home dementia-friendly means making sure you provide all the necessary resources for your loved one to stay safe and comfortable at home. You can start by looking at your own home first.
If possible, remove as much clutter as you can, and there should be plenty of light sources. Make sure you have given them enough space to safely walk around the house to keep them active. Your loved one may need extra assistance at home to cope with memory loss. You can help them stay safe and well by making sure they have everything they need to feel comfortable at home.
However, there are solutions, in home safety, you can employ to combat any stage of dementia and maintain their quality of life for as long as possible.
Dementia is a progressive disease that affects memory, thinking skills, behaviour, and the ability to carry out daily activities. As dementia progresses, the sufferer may become less aware of what is happening around them. Their ability to communicate declines, making it hard for them to express themselves clearly and effectively. Dementia symptoms can also include confusion and agitation, leading to challenging behaviours like aggression, self-injury and wandering away from home.
It is important to plan when caring for someone who needs help. Planning ahead will allow you to make decisions about your loved one’s care if something unexpected happens.
You might need to make decisions about care options, legal and medical issues, finances, and anything else you want to discuss with them. If you don’t think through all of these issues before the situation arises, then you could end up feeling unprepared and stressed out.
As their condition worsens, you might find daily living a struggle. This is completely normal! Unless you are trained in all things Dementia, you will need to find extra help.
Home Care, (aka. Respite Care) is a wonderful solution to ease your worry and stress. You can have a professional caregiver come to your home, or your loved ones’ home, to pop by and provide the best quality of care. They can help with daily domestic tasks, bathing, cleaning, administering medicine, and even pet care.
There are studies that recommend Dementia patients remain at home for as long as possible. The research showed that somewhere familiar to them, surrounded by familiar objects, scents and memories they’ve made in the home, can help keep their brains active.
So if your loved one wants to spend their last days at home, surrounded by the people they love, you might want to look into dementia caregivers. Talking and making choices early with the person with dementia, (even though it’s a difficult time and a difficult decision), helps you avoid making them in the later stages.
You and your family may decide that they need to move to a long-term care facility when a person with dementia requires full-time assistance.
Having them move into a lovely care home may be the greatest option for the two of you. If you believe they require constant care or that they should be more sociable, a nursing home is a great option.
Dementia affects communication skills. As the disease progresses, the person with dementia may become less capable of expressing themselves clearly. You may need to adjust your approach to communicating with them as the disease progresses. Such as setting a positive tone of voice and using body language to communicate your feelings.
You may also need to consider what type of information you share with them. Some people with dementia prefer to keep certain topics private, or it can make them extremely worried and hurt/upset.
It is important to establish a daily routine when caring for someone with dementia. These routines will enable you and your loved one to stay organised and feel more secure.
You may also need to adjust your schedule to accommodate changes in memory and behaviour. For instance, if your loved one forgets certain events or places, you might need to change your routine to match theirs.
Routines are important because they give structure to their days. Having routines in place helps them plan the day and keep track. It also makes it easier for us to communicate what time of the day it is to our loved ones.
Opening the curtains in daylight and closing them at night can be cues for someone with dementia. It helps them to know what to do and when to expect certain events.
As much as possible, try to allow your loved one to continue doing things for themselves. This may be more challenging as their dementia progresses, but will help them maintain a sense of purpose and achievement. Maintaining independence helps them focus on what they still can do rather than what is lost. If they can get out of bed and put on clothes each morning, or they can keep up their own personal hygiene, let them do that.
Many people with dementia may lose their ability to complete simple tasks like
Exercise is important for anyone’s health. It improves digestion, boosts energy levels, and keeps you healthy. Exercise also helps you relax and release stress. Everyone should try to get at least 30 minutes of physical activity every day.
Regarding exercise and dementia, there are many more benefits. It keeps them active, sociable and less irritable from boredom. A simple walk around the park or to the corner shop is a great way to get them some fresh air and new sights.
Dementia affects everyone differently and as certain diseases progress, some people find it hard to socialise. Others find that being around other people brings back memories of happier times. Whatever your loved one finds difficult, carers/partner should encourage them to engage in activities that bring them pleasure. They may not remember how they felt before dementia, so it is important to make them feel comfortable and happy and to reassure them.
(Head out to community centres or daycare centres that put on dementia-friendly activities)
If your loved one struggles with eating or drinking, try to encourage them to drink water instead of sugary drinks. Offer small snacks throughout the day and avoid large meals. Make sure that the snacks provided are nutritious foods. You could even try making healthy treats like fruit salad, and smoothies or keep it simple with finger foods.
Make time for meals as a family unit! If they can, and it’s safe for them to do so, get them help in the kitchen. Cook food that they are familiar with or a meal that brings up a cherished memory. Or even get them baking with the grandchildren!
It is hard to care for someone with dementia. Caregivers experiencing high-stress levels during the moderate and severe stages may also be dealing with anticipatory grief associated with a feeling of impending loss of their loved one. Talking with the palliative care team’s social worker can help caregivers understand these feelings and develop strategies for dealing with them.
You may find that as the person’s advanced dementia progresses, your caring role overtakes your life and relationship. This might become extremely difficult and you might find yourself needing to speak to someone to talk through your worries. This could be other family members or professional help.
There are so many helpful and different types of mental health services available to you.
There are many different types of therapy and counselling available. Talking therapies, cognitive behavioural therapy, psychodynamic therapy, solution-focused brief therapy, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, dialectical behaviour therapy, and acceptance and commitment therapy. Are all brilliant if you feel like you cannot cope.
There are many organisations to seek to provide help if you need it.
Making the home clutter-free, trip-free, and well-lit will make it much safer for your loved one to move around, which will make it simpler to care for them.
Planning ahead is crucial because, regrettably, there will probably come a moment when your loved one is unable to make decisions for themselves. Early on, get down with your loved one and write down their wishes for future care and who should be in charge of those decisions.
Being a caregiver for someone with dementia is extremely difficult, therefore it’s crucial to ask for assistance if you need it. The Alzheimer’s Society and Dementia UK are just two of the groups that offer assistance. Another alternative is to arrange respite care so you can take a break.
