Are Odd Behaviors Signs of Alzheimer’s?
Being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease is a scary thought for everyone, but the good news is if it is caught early, there are several medications that can slow down the progression of the disease, delaying the need for fulltime or nursing home care. The problem is that the earliest signs come on so slowly and are so intermittent, that most people and their families just chalk them up to getting older and live in denial that anything is really wrong.
A terrific guidebook on the subject is “Elder Rage” by eldercare advocate, Jacqueline Marcell, who cared for two parents with the debilitating disease. Her bottom-line message is the importance for everyone to understand the warning signs and to seek help immediately.
TEN WARNING SIGNS OF ALZHEIMER’S
(Reprinted with permission of the Alzheimer’s Association)
1. Memory loss
2. Difficulty performing familiar tasks
3. Problems with language
4. Disorientation of time and place
5. Poor or decreased judgment
6. Problems with abstract thinking
7. Misplacing things
8. Changes in mood or behavior
9. Changes in personality
10. Loss of initiative
If you notice any of these signs in your loved one, write them down and keep track, so you can share them with the doctor. Then, ask for a referral to a neurologist who is specialized in dementia, who will do a battery of blood, neurological, memory tests, and possibly PET scans (and rule out the many reversible dementias), so an accurate diagnosis can be obtained and appropriate treatment can be started as soon as possible.
Jacqueline Marcell is a former television executive whose caregiving experience resulted in her first (best-selling) book “Elder Rage”, a Book-of-the-Month Club selection being considered for a feature film. Over fifty endorsements include: Hugh Downs, Regis Philbin, John Hopkins Memory Clinic, Duke University Center for Aging, and the National Adult Day Services Association who bestowed their Media Award. Marcell also hosts “Coping With Caregiving” an Internet radio program (http://www.wsRadio.com/CopingWithCaregiving) and is an International speaker on Alzheimer’s and eldercare awareness and reform. www.ElderRage.com