People With Dementia

Dementia is a very common cognitive degenerative disorder that is more common in the older folks than not. As we all age, are body starts to break down in parts, and eventually the mind starts to go a bit, too.  With dementia, the person loses cognitive function of a lengthy period of time, usually from another disease.  For most people, dementia is an accelerated degeneration over time, where normal aging just goes slower over time.

People with dementia tend to show a lot of signs fairly early on, and they just slowly start getting worse from there.  Dementia can affect almost all parts of a persons mind, including memory, attention, problem solving skills and language.  Those who develop dementia tend to live for less than four years after they receive their diagnosis, and most of that time people are placed under care, since many normal day-to-day functions and activities will quickly become impossible.  Dementia is treatable to a degree, but less than 10 percent of cases are considered treatable.

Types Of Dementia

Various types of dementia result from what part of the brain is affected.  The brain is considered to have two main parts when discussing the types of dementia, the cortical, which involves the cortex and the outside of the brain, and the subcortical, which is the inside of the brain underneath the cortex.  Here are some of the various dementia illnesses people tend to develop.

Caring For People With Dementia

Taking care of people with dementia can be difficult, especially when the illness starts to progress.  Dementia can have a tendency to go downhill quickly, with a loved one needing attention and care fairly often throughout the day.  People in the early stages of dementia may display general frustration at every day tasks, of may forget certain times of day, like dinnertime or when to go to bed.  Most of these can be remedied with basic additions to your home.  Adding clocks to every room, or even putting a little schedule to remind them on a wall of in their pocket can help them to remember when they need to do things.  Also, leave the blinds open, both to give them something to look at and help them remember daytime and nighttime, which will hopefully remain associated with sleep. 

With people with dementia, even simple tasks can become frustrating and difficult, and many will refuse help for a while.  Try to make things easier for them by only doing part of the task for them, and letting them finish.  If they're making a sandwich, get out all the ingredients for them, and maybe even start it for them, but let them put the last piece of bread on, and maybe even put the ingredients away.  Simple things like that can really help them to retain some confidence in their memory and abilities. 

People with dementia also develop wandering spells, where they will just mindlessly wander around or out into areas they should not be.  While you can restrain their movements, this can cause serious problems, both mentally and physically.  They could become hurt, they could hurt you, they could begin to feel trapped and it could become seriously frustrating.  If they do wander, just give them someplace where they can.  A fenced in yard, taking them for a walk down to the park where you can monitor them, or even just giving them a big open window to look out can really help this problem.  If there are areas they shouldn't go, like out the front door onto the street, it is best to keep the door locked or blocked.  There are deadbolts and other locks that require a key on both sides in order to enter or exit.  Also, placing a simple stop sign on the door can serve as a reminder that this door is off limits. 

Above all else, if you are dealing with people with dementia, you have to stay calm even in the frustrating situations.  If you get frustrated, then they will too.  Make sure you still have some time to yourself, and they have a calm and quiet room to themselves as well.  Bedrooms typically work well, and they will give both of you some time to remain calm and relaxed, even after the frustrating situations.

If caring for a person with dementia becomes too much for you to handle, there is no shame in looking into other care options for them.  It would be better for both them and you.