What is Alzheimer's Disease?

Alzheimer's Disease is a progressive brain disease that results in the loss of memory and other intellectual abilities, disrupting a person's ability to function socially and behaviorally in their activities of daily living.

What causes Alzheimer's Disease?

The answer to this question is still unknown, although scientists have found correlating evidence that is bringing us closer to the answer. Two abnormal brain structures have been found, called Plaques and Tangles. These structures form between and inside nerve cells. They form in most people throughout the aging process, but are much more common with Alzheimer's Disease. Essentially, these structures are thought to seriously damage, or cause the death of neural structures in the brain. Other factors may include family history, age, lifestyle choices, general health, or environmental factors.

What are the symptoms to look for?

At first, Alzheimer's Disease might look like someone ''just getting older.'' However, memory loss and confusion are not normal signs of aging.  Common symptoms may include:

• Forgetfulness (beyond losing your car keys or stumbling over a word)
• Memory problems that seem to worsen, including names of people you should know
• Repeating things you've already said, or becoming confused in conversation
• Forgetting appointments or important dates
• Forgetting how to complete standard tasks (balancing a checkbook, paying bills)
• Trouble reading, writing, determining color
• Confusion regarding time, place, or location, or other general disorientation
• Losing good sense of judgment (inability to manage a budget, beyond missing a monthly payment)
• Losing the ability to make decisions or to make plans
• Forgetting how to do daily tasks (make dinner, brush teeth)
• A change in personality

o Anxious
o Withdrawn
o Stubborn
o Aggressive
o Moody

How is Alzheimer's Disease diagnosed?

Alzheimer's cannot be officially diagnosed until the brain is examined after death. However, doctors can currently diagnose the disease with about 90 percent accuracy. This diagnoses is achieved after a series of blood tests (to rule out other diseases); memory and mental psychological testing; other diagnostic testing; and MRI, CT, or PET brain scans.

Once diagnosed, what behaviors can be expected?

Generally, Alzheimer's Disease can be separated into three stages. The disease progresses over 8 - 10 years on average, but has been known to last anywhere from 5 - 20 years.

•    Stage One

o Mild memory loss
o Lapses in judgment
o Mild personality shifts
o Limited attention span
o Spatial disorientation

•    Stage Two

o Trouble following conversations
o Trouble with logical reasoning
o Inability to follow written instructions
o Inability to dress appropriately (winter coat in summer; pajamas during the daytime)
o Episodes of incontinence
o General confusion

• Forgetting names
• Forgetting social relationships (confusing a brother with a son)
• Forgetting where they live
• Confusion with the day, year, season

o Tendency to wander
o Feeling restless, agitated
o Communicative problems
o Significant personality changes (may include anger, challenging emotional or physical behaviors, paranoia, etc.)

•    Stage Three

o Require assistance with all daily needs
o Lose ability to walk alone, and eventually to sit up
o Incontinence
o Inability to speak coherently
o Inability to identify others
o Difficulty swallowing and eating

Tips for coping with someone who has Alzheimer's Disease

• Find help or support for yourself (Get information on the Comforts of Home Alzheimer's Support Groups; or find others through your local church, Alzheimer's Association, online blogs, or friends).
• If people offer help, take it! You'll be a better caregiver if you are able to take revitalizing breaks now and then.
• Take the time to learn everything you can about the disease. The more you understand what your loved one is going through, and how you can prepare for the future, the more easily you will be able to cope with it.
• Don't give up what is important to you. Continue to stay healthy, exercise, eat right, socialize, and stay involved with friends and family. If you don't take care of yourself, you can't appropriately take care of your loved one.
• Become aware of tasks you need to do for your loved one. Do you need to take over walking the dog, paying the bills, or watering their plants?
• Stay physically fit. Caring for someone with Alzheimer's can take a lot of physical strength. They may need help dressing, bathing, and getting around. Be good to your body: only lift what you are able to lift.
• Plan for the future. Decide what you will do as the disease progresses. Begin looking into adult day care centers or memory care communities, so you are ready to make those decisions when you can no longer care for that person.
• Be aware of changes. Watch for behavioral changes. At first, your loved one may be safe in the house alone. As the disease progresses, they may no longer be able to eat   lunch, take medications, or remember to do things on their own.
• Laugh every day. Sometimes it helps to overlook the big things and focus on the little things. Did your loved one say something funny? Laugh! Were the able to dress on their own in the morning? Take pleasure in the little things.
• Be patient and calm.
• React to their emotions, not to their words. People with Alzheimer's might be confused about what is going on around them, but their emotions are still real.