Alzheimer’s and Dementia
The Challenges of Being an Alzheimer’s Caregiver
Being a caregiver for someone with Alzheimer’s disease presents a unique set of emotional, physical, and mental challenges. As the disease progresses, caregivers often face the heartbreaking reality of watching a loved one gradually lose their memory, personality, and ability to perform everyday tasks. This emotional toll can lead to feelings of sadness, frustration, and…
Read MoreWhat is Mild Cognitive Impairment
Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a condition characterized by noticeable changes in thinking abilities—such as memory, reasoning, or attention—that are greater than expected for a person’s age, but not severe enough to significantly interfere with daily life or independence. Individuals with MCI may forget appointments, misplace items more often, or struggle to find the right…
Read MoreWhat to Know About Parkinson’s Dementia
Parkinson’s dementia is a type of progressive dementia that can develop in individuals with Parkinson’s disease, typically several years after the initial diagnosis. It affects memory, thinking, and reasoning abilities, often alongside the motor symptoms of Parkinson’s, such as tremors, stiffness, and slow movement. People with Parkinson’s dementia may experience confusion, visual hallucinations, trouble concentrating,…
Read MoreWhat You Need to Know About Vascular Dementia
Vascular dementia is a type of dementia caused by reduced blood flow to the brain, often due to strokes, small vessel disease, or other conditions that damage blood vessels. Unlike Alzheimer’s disease, which typically starts with memory loss, vascular dementia may begin with problems in thinking, organization, decision-making, or concentration. These symptoms can appear suddenly…
Read MoreHow LEGOS Can be More Than Child’s Play for Those with Dementia
While LEGOS are most often associated with children as a way to stimulate creativity and imagination, did you also know that they can be very useful in the treatment of older adults with dementia? LEGO bricks can be a highly effective and engaging tool for older adults with dementia, offering a range of cognitive, emotional,…
Read MoreIs It Too Soon to Diagnose Alzheimer’s in People With No Symptoms?
Did you know that you don’t have to experience memory loss or other common dementia-related symptoms to be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s? Alzheimer’s disease often begins with subtle signs that progressively impact daily life. One of the earliest indicators is memory loss, particularly forgetting recently learned information, important dates, or events, and frequently asking the same…
Read MoreCorrecting Your Vision Could Lower Your Alzheimer’s Risk
Vision impairment is strongly linked to a higher risk of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease. This connection is due to how vision loss affects brain health, mental stimulation, and social interaction. Visual processing areas in the brain can overlap with regions affected by dementia. Vision impairment can signal early neurodegeneration in these shared areas, suggesting a common underlying pathology. In…
Read MoreWhat to Tell Grandkids When a Grandparent Has Dementia
Explaining a dementia diagnosis to kids can be challenging for several reasons. Not only is the disease very complex, with a progressive nature that can be difficult to predict from person to person, but the diagnosis brings with it an emotional impact, the potential for misunderstanding or self-blame, and frustration when no easy answers are…
Read More