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Its important to understand and educate yourself about so many things in life, but particularly something as devastating as watching a loved one succumb to Alzheimers. Knowing what to expect at each stage of the disease can go a long way toward making it easier for you and other family members to contend with. According to the Alzheimers Association, there are seven stages of Alzheimers, but not every person with Alzheimers will exhibit all the signs and some of the signs might be missed by friends and family who chalk them up to simple aging, senile dementia, or grandpa being grandpa. Here are the seven stages and what to look for in each stage. The first stage is really not a stage at all. This is when grandma or grandpa has no signs of memory loss or any other signs of Alzheimers. The second stage of Alzheimers might look to family members like normal signs of aging. Since we all lose a little of our memory as we get older, this stage really looks like nothing more than normal aging. The third stage of Alzheimers is characterized by what the Alzheimers Association calls mild cognitive decline. Its at this stage that a doctor might see some signs of Alzheimers and, depending on the patient, might even be able to diagnose early-stage Alzheimers. In this stage, your grandma or grandpa might have trouble remembering the name of someone they just met, or read something and retain very little of what theyve read. They might struggle for words or names in a way thats obvious to others. But generally in this stage, it might still seem that your loved one is just suffering normal effects of aging. Its really in the fourth stage of Alzheimers that family and friends - and doctors - might begin calling what looked like basic aging memory complaints something more, and its when the classic signs of Alzheimers become apparent. These symptoms or signs include forgetting current events or recent experiences; an impaired memory of childhood, personal experiences and the like; and having trouble with basic daily tasks like paying bills, planning menus or completing an errand list. It can be hard to distinguish between the fifth and sixth stages of Alzheimers. In these later stages of the disease, simple daily tasks become extremely difficult to perform. In the former stage (the fifth stage), a patient might have a hard time recalling for a doctor their address, schools they attended, or even their phone number. They might choose the wrong clothing for the season or occasion they are dressing for, or they will be confused about the date, season, or day of the week. Its easy at this stage to consider these problems normal relative to aging, but experts say its important to consider they might be signs of Alzheimers. In the sixth stage of Alzheimers much more cognitive ability is lost. Its hard for grandma or grandpa to recall their personal history (though they will usually know their name at this point); they might have difficulty recalling their spouses name (but they will generally still recognize faces); they need help with toileting and other bathroom and personal care duties and will experience disruption in sleep and wake cycles. Its also in this stage that theres a risk of your loved one wandering off and becoming lost and theres the potential of them becoming delusional or having hallucinations. Finally, the seventh stage of Alzheimers is arguably the most difficult for everyone involved. In this stage, your loved one might lose the ability to speak, or respond to their environment. You might think to bring grandmas favorite ice cream to her, but she could likely forget she even likes ice cream. Alzheimers disease can be a frightening thing for you and your loved one. But knowing and being able to identify the stages of Alzheimers is important. |
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