When you forget something, it could be part of an aging process. However, if you forget or lose your memory until it interferes with your day-to-day activities, it can be one of the symptoms of Alzheimer’s. What is Alzheimer’s disease? What are the characteristics or signs of Alzheimer’s Disease? Let’s see the explanation below.
What is Alzheimer’s disease?
Alzheimer’s disease is a brain-related disease. The term Alzheimer is triggered by a German neurologist named Alos Alzheimer. Alzheimer’s disease is actually one of the most common causes of dementia (also known by people with senile pronunciation).
In this disease, there is the death of brain cells due to the buildup of a protein plaque in the brain. In addition, in Alzheimer’s sufferers occurs a deficiency of essential chemicals in the brain that functions in the delivery of messages or signals in the brain.
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The symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease stages
The symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease develop in three stages, namely the early stage, intermediate stage, and final stage. In the early stages, the symptoms of decreased memory of Alzheimer’s disease are difficult to recognize, because they are often considered an effect of aging.
When entering the next stage, symptoms will begin to be seen in sufferers. The speed of progression of Alzheimer’s disease symptoms varies with each patient, but generally symptoms will develop slowly over several years.
Early Stage Symptoms
The main symptom of Alzheimer’s disease is slow memory loss that gets worse over time. Below are examples of memory loss symptoms that are often experienced by people with early-stage Alzheimer’s disease:
- Forget the name of the object or place.
- Forget about the events that have not been experienced for a long time.
- Forget about things that have not been discussed with others for a long time.
- Often lost in a place or area that is actually very familiar.
- Misplaced items (e.g. Putting dishes in the wardrobe).
- Forgot how to use something.
- Difficulty in writing.
- Often repeat the same question.
- Difficulty stringing words together in communicating.
- Decrease or loss of ability to smell something (anosmia)
- Looks less energized and unenthusiastic.
- It looks like you’re depressed.
- Reluctant to adapt to change.
- Afraid to do new things.
- It’s hard to make decisions and easy to guess.
- Not interested in activities that were previously preferred.
- Spend more time sleeping, sitting, or watching television than chatting with family or socializing.
Symptoms of Intermediate Stage
When entering the intermediate stage, the severity of Alzheimer’s disease symptoms that have been felt before will increase. Patients who have entered this stage need extra attention and need help in carrying out daily activities, such as bathing, dressing, or eating.
The following are examples of symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease in the intermediate stages:
- It’s hard to remember the names of family members or friends.
- Having trouble communicating.
- Mood swings are becoming more frequent.
- Often restless, frustrated, or anxious.
- Frequently impaired
- Difficulty managing time and solving problems.
- Begin to experience hallucinations or delusions.
- Looking confused, for example, not knowing where he was.
Late-Stage Symptoms
Once symptoms enter the final stages, people with Alzheimer’s disease need full supervision and help from others to go about their daily activities. Not only sufferers, people around him can also feel depressed.
Below are some examples of symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease in the late stages:
- Memory decline is getting worse.
- Loss of communication skills.
- Difficulty moving without the help of others.
- Urinate or defecate unnoticed.
- Difficulty eating alone and difficulty swallowing food.
- Weight loss drastically and has a skin infection.
- Hallucinations and delusions worsen, making sufferers become always suspicious of those around them, even to the point of being rude.
Common Symptoms or Signs of Alzheimer’s disease
In the early stages, people with Alzheimer’s disease will experience mild memory impairment, such as forgetting the name of objects or places, and forgetting the occurrence or the content of the conversations that have not happened long ago. Over time, these symptoms will be worse.
In the advanced stage, people with Alzheimer’s disease are difficult to talk or explain things, difficult to plan something, difficult to make decisions, often seen confused, and experiencing personality changes.
Signs of Alzheimer’s disease #1: Memory loss
Everyone might just forget a conversation in detail, but people with Alzheimer’s will forget what just happened or what he just said. This loss of memory is inconsistent. People with Alzheimer’s may just forget the name of the dog one day and remember it again the next day.
Agitation and mood swings
Agitation and mood swings is one of the Signs Of Alzheimers.
People with Alzheimer’s will seem anxious, it could be that he moves continuously and quickly, angrily in a particular place or becomes stuck on certain details. Agitation is the result of fear, confusion, fatigue and overwhelmed to try to understand a world that has not made sense according to him. In addition to the rapid and unwarranted mood swings can occur.
Difficult to focus
People who suffer from Alzheimer’s are also difficult to put focus on what it does. This causes it to be difficult to do daily activities, forgetting how to cook, not being able to do simple calculations so it requires it to work in a longer time than usual.
Difficult to do familiar activities
If you’re having trouble planning or completing everyday tasks, getting confused about how to drive, and suddenly becoming difficult to manage your finances when you’ve previously worked on it, be careful, maybe you have Alzheimer’s.
Disorientation
Being confused about time, either day, month, or important date can also be one indication of Alzheimer’s. The people with Alzheimer’s are also often confused with where he is and how he reaches the place, even not to know the way home.
Difficulty understanding visualizing
Patients with Alzheimer’s difficulties reading, determining distance, distinguishing colors, and not recognizing their own face. Generally they do not recognize an object to the wrong name, or not fit anything.
Communication Disorders
Patients with Alzheimer’s difficulties speaking and finding the right word match. They also often stop in the middle of the conversation, and are confused to continue.
Put the item out of place
People with Alzheimer’s often forget where to put something. Sometimes they accuse others of moving and stealing the goods.
Wrong decision Making
Alzheimer’s sufferers often dress mismatched, and cannot care for themselves well.
Loss of Vision
Vision problems may also occur. This may be as simple as increasing difficulty reading. You or a loved one may also start having problem with assessing distances and determining contrast or color while driving.
Avoiding social interactions
When symptoms arise, you may notice that you or a loved one becomes increasingly self-withdrawing from a social activity, work project, or hobby that was previously important. This avoidance can increase as the symptoms deteriorate.
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Thank you very much for reading The Signs Of Alzheimers, hopefully useful.
