The difference between just forgetting something and dementia
For example, is your mother a day older and does she sometimes forget appointments, names or her keys? Then you might start to worry. What is the difference between just forgetting something and dementia? You can recognize dementia by these six problems.
1. Memory Problems
- New information or what happened yesterday has been forgotten.
- Knowledge of the past disappears.
- Not recognizing relatives and acquaintances.
Over the years, your memory deteriorates. You become a little more forgetful than you used to be. You can’t come up with a name for a while or you forget an appointment. You walk upstairs to get something, but once you’ve reached the top you’ve missed what you needed. This is normal forgetfulness: it’s a little clumsy at times, but otherwise you’re functioning just fine. You are able to arrange your banking affairs, run your household and travel independently. There is more to dementia than just forgetfulness. A person with dementia has difficulty with everyday tasks. Often the behavior changes and communication becomes a problem.
2. Orientation Problems
- Getting lost in familiar places.
- Forgetting where you are and how you got there
- Less awareness of time: not knowing whether it is morning or already afternoon.
3. Communicating Problems
- Difficulty following conversations.
- Suddenly stopping talking in the middle of a conversation.
- Giving strange answers.
- Repetition: asking or telling the same thing over and over.
- Forgotten names and words.
- More stuttering than before.
4. Problems with everyday tasks
- Everyday things like getting dressed, making coffee and taking care of themselves become more difficult.
- The household is messier than it used to be.
- Planning or doing something in the right order, such as cooking, does not work well.
- Losing things or thinking someone stole them.
- Spending too much money or buying too many groceries at home.
5. Physical Problems
- To lose weight.
- Difficulty walking.
- Problems with seeing or judging distances.
6. Problems with mood, other behavior
- Restlessness: always walking around and seeming to be looking for something.
- Passivity: doing little, sleeping a lot.
- Participate less in social activities, withdraw.
- Being gloomy, anxious or suspicious.
- Changing character, doing things you never did before.
On the website of Alzheimer Nederland you can: a memory test to make. To test yourself, but you can also complete the test with someone in mind that you are concerned about.
