Living with Alzheimer's Disease

While the diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease is becoming more common, so are the treatments, preventive measures, and delaying medications.

Many people confuse the symptoms of dementia with those of Alzheimer's Disease (AD). While some patients progress from dememtia to AD, that is not always the case. Most seniors experience some loss of memory and are sometimes a little disoriented. This is very common. Who hasn't misplaced their keys recently, for example? When we experience enough of these 'senior moments', we sometime worry that we may be in the early stages of AD. That is not usually the case.

Most times, Dementia is noticed by those actually experiencing disorientation and memory loss while the symptoms of Alzheimer's are usually observed first by those around the patient. They see their loved one unable to navigate in familiar surroundings (like their house) and they notice that the patient's short term memory is not effective while long term memory seems unaffected.

If you notice such symptoms exhibited by your loved one, please get them to see a geriatric physician specializing in AD disorders. An early diagnosis can usually result in certain medications being prescribed to delay the progression of AD.

For those of us worried about coming down with AD, we can make some changes to our habits and diet that have shown to be effective. We need to exercise our bodies and our brains very regularly, for example. While many times, AD seems to be genetic, improving our overall health and remaining as active as possible seems to work for many people.

The effects that Alzheimer's Disease has upon a family and loved ones of the patient are very extensive. Dealing with an irrational and sometimes combative AD patient can be extremely difficult to handle.

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