Dementia Awareness Week is coming up (14th-20th May) and it got me thinking; would I know what to look out for in a family member? To be honest, until recently I never really knew what dementia was and I definitely wouldn’t have known if someone had it or not. I certainly wouldn’t have known what symptoms to look out for in someone before now.
Something I didn’t realise is that dementia and Alzheimer’s disease are part of the same thing. I always thought these were completely different and got annoyed with myself for getting the two confused. Many people who have Alzheimer’s disease end up with dementia as well.
Dementia is a syndrome which commonly affects people over 65 although it can occur at other ages and it occurs when the brain is damaged by different diseases or strokes. There are so many different symptoms of dementia and people can be affected differently. It’s really important to recognise changes in people and here are just a few of the things you could look out for.
Symptoms of dementia:
- Depression
- Changes in moods
- Mental confusion
- Difficulty finding the right words
- Difficulty concentrating
- Trouble remembering things that happened recently
- Struggling to follow a conversation
- Remembering days or dates
- Forgetting names and people
- Feeling confused
- Difficulty completing every day tasks
- Loss of sense of direction
- Being repetitive
- Struggling to accept change
Diagnosis is key so it’s really important to encourage anyone you think could have dementia to see their GP as soon as possible. If someone is already feeling confused or out of sorts it may be hard for them to realise that something could be wrong!
While many people with this condition are able to stay living at home either independently or with a carer, there is also the option of care homes. There are now care homes that are dedicated to dementia care so there are plenty of options available.
I hope this post has been helpful in raising some awareness! If, like me, you didn’t know much about it, any extra information is a big plus!
This is a collaborative post. All opinions are our own.
My grandma had dementia and I also worked in social care for years so know a lot about Dementia myself, not many people know much about it though unless they have experienced it first hand x
I hope this post helps some people!
This is such a helpful post and I hope it is read by many. Dementia is such a cruel thing and effects not just the person who has it but all of those around them xx
Thank you!
This is such an interesting read – when I was much younger my Grandma had dementia and I didn’t really understand what it was. Raising awareness is so important!
Not enough people know what it really is!
So many people are effected by dementia, it’s so sad. I met numerous people when I worked in the care sector. Well done for raising awareness.
Thank you!
A really good thing to share. I’ll be honest and say I wasn’t aware of many of those symptoms. So thank you for sharing!
I’m glad it helped, even if only 1 person!
Good job raising awareness. My nan has several of the symptoms but it has not been recognised as dementia. There are many others in her care home that do have quite severe dementia and it is sad for them and their families
Oh I bet it is!
Important subject to be aware of symptoms as it is so prevalent.
Not enough people know about it!
Very informative post. Well done for raising awareness.
This is such an important topic to talk about. My Nanny has dementia, but she refused point blank to admit it. It is such an awful thing to see happening to someone you love so much, so I couldn’t imagine how scary it must be for the person who is suffering.