When a person you love suffers from a disease you will want to do everything possible in order to understand what they are going through.
It's hard to face the reality of Alzheimer's Disease and to know that it only gets worse.
Understanding how you can help someone who is suffering from this disease.
At first memory loss may be due to gradual dementia that is common as we get older.
To determine if a person is indeed suffering from Alzheimer's Disease the doctor may refer the patient to a neurologist who specializes in memory disorders and brain functions.
They may also recommend that they see a psychiatrist to rule out any other disease or condition.
Together with all their reports they can work together to come to a conclusion if your loved one is actually suffering from Alzheimer's or if it is something else.
If it is found that they are suffering from this disease they will need your help in determining the next steps to take to make life as easy for them as possible.
You should Contact the doctor if: • Your loved one cannot pay a bill or write a check without asking for help.
• They forget how to do simple tasks around the house that they do every single day.
• They forget how to do personal hygiene.
Simple things like step by step process of bathing, brushing teeth, fixing hair, and more becomes very difficult to figure out and do.
• They may wear the same clothes for days.
If you only see them every other day you may find that they are in the same clothes that they were wearing when you saw them last.
• They may forget where they put things around the house.
Simple things may not have even been misplaced but they cannot remember where they normally keep them.
This may cause them to spend an entire day looking for that one object.
• They may forget that they have told you the same story again.
You may find that they repeat their stories over and over like you haven't heard them before.
This is because they cannot remember telling you.
• They may ask the same question over and over.
This is common due to the fact that they cannot remember what they told you.
• They may start depending on others to make decisions for them.
They lose their ability to make decisions and that is why they depend on others to decide instead of speaking up for themselves.
It's not easy to admit that there might be a problem when you start noticing signs of Alzheimer's but you can stay a step ahead when you go to the doctor and start treatment right away.
You can't stop the disease from becoming worse but you can slow it down with help from medication as well as treatment you can do at home.
Keep things as familiar as possible for as long as you can.
Remind them that they are loved and you are there for them.