10 Warning Signs of Alzheimer's Disease

10 Warning Signs include:

1. Memory Loss

Forgetting recently learned information is one of the common signs of dementia. A person forgets more often and is unable to recall information later.

2. Difficulty performing familiar tasks.

People with dementia often find it hard or impossible to plan everyday tasks. They may forget how to follow directions, play a game, or make a phone call.

3. Problems with language.

People with  Alzheimer's  disease often forget simple words or substitute unusual words, making their speech or writing hard to understand. They may be unable to find their toothbrush, for example, and instead ask for "that thing with stubs for my mouth clean."

4. Orientation to time and place

People with  Alzheimer's  may become lost in their own neighborhood, forget how they arrived somewhere, and be unable to return home after  a  trip to the store or a friend's home.

5. Poor or decreased judgment

People with  Alzheimer's  may dress in appropriately for the weather. They may have trouble with money decisions - banking, giving money away, and forgetting to pay bills because they lack relevancy.

6. Trouble with abstract reasoning

Someone with  Alzheimer's  may have unusual difficulties completing complex mental tasks like forgetting what numbers represent and their purpose in  an  equation.

7. Misplacing things

 A  person with  Alzheimer's  may put things in unusual places like  a  ring in a heater vent or the phone in the freezer.

8. Changes in mood or behavior

Someone with  Alzheimer's  may display sudden mood swings - from calm to agitated to angry - for no apparent reason.

9. Changes in personality

People with dementia may become extremely suspicious, confused, fearful, or dependent.

10. Loss of initiative

 A  person with  Alzheimer's  may become very passive, sitting in front of the television for hours, sleeping more than usual, or not wanting to participate in previously enjoyable activities.

After noting changes in attitude and behavior, checking diet, stress level, and other factors of daily living (best when recorded daily), consult your physician. If it is the appointment is for you, keeping it may be easier. You want (and need) answers. If you are making that appointment for a loved one, the task may be more difficult, especially if that loved one is in denial, refuses to accept changes in behavior as a worry, not recognizing there are changes of concern, or believing that forgetting - severe forgetting - is a natural part of aging.

Just remind yourself that you are completing a necessary move to make sure you or your loved one get the specialized care needed for continuing a rich, productive life. Yes, forgetting is natural - we are overloaded and inundated with minutia and more and sometimes we just fail to attend and listen in the first place. However, cooking a turkey in the dryer or wearing a bathing suit to shovel snow does not reflect "normal" forgetting. Forgetting the name of a new acquaintance happens. Confusing a spouse or a child and then being unable to make to connection or correction is not.

Find out - an education is of immense value. When making the appointment ask for an extended time. Jot questions and note changes so that you are ready to talk and learn. If you are taking a loved one for the examination, be prepared to be silent. The doctor is not examining you, but your loved one. Filling in the blank rather than allowing him/her to speak muddies the dementia waters even more. When you hear things that do not jive with current living actions and reactions, request some private time with the doctor. Those with  Alzheimer's  disease have  an  uncanny way of saying the right thing at the right time when you most want them to demonstrate behaviors that build anxiety in you.