Symptoms of Alzheimer's disease

Perhaps, if we noticed the signs earlier, we could have got her treated earlier. It is not usual for Mum to forget things like taking out the bread before spreading the butter. She did it the other way round. People who suffer from Alzheimer's will be faced with many difficulties in terms of communicating, learning, thinking and reasoning, and as a result, it has a severe impact on an individual's work, social activities and family life.

To summarize the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, we have come up with a simple list which includes 10 common symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, so as to allow people who are diagnosed with this disease to receive information, care and support from the family as soon as possible.

The 10 common symptoms are:

1. Memory loss: Forgetting recently learned information and being unable to recall the information later.

2. Difficulty in performing familiar tasks: People suffering from Alzheimers disease often faced a problem when completing everyday tasks, losing track of the steps associated with a task.

3. Problems with language: Sufferers of Alzheimer's disease often forget simple words and substitute unusual words, thus their speech or writing becomes hard to understand.

4. Disorientation to time and place: It is possible patients with Alzheimer's disease to become lost in their own neighborhood, and not know how they got there and get back home.

5. Poor and decreased judgement: Alzheimer patients may dress unsuitably, and make poor judgement, for example getting swindled by con-men.

6. Problem with abstract thinking: Alzheimer patients suffer from the inability to perform complex mental task, for example for getting which numbers to be used.

7. Misplacing things: Alzheimer sufferers may place their things at unusual places, for instance putting a bowl of hot soup to be eaten for lunch into the freezer during lunch time.

8. Changes in mood or behavior: Moods and behaviour of people with Alzheimer's will change dramatically, from tears to anger to calm, without any reason at all.

9. Changes in personalities: Personalities of people with Alzheimer's changes dramatically, often becoming confused, wary of a family members or being too dependent on them.

10. Loss of initiative: A person suffering from Alzheimer's may become very passive, sometimes sitting in front of the TV for hours, or sleeping more than usual.

You may notice that you have some of the symptoms mentioned above, but not to worry:

Difference between Alzheimer's and normal age-related memory changes

Someone with Alzheimer's disease symptoms - Someone with normal age-related memory changes

- Forgets entire memories - Forgets part of memory

- Rarely remembers later - Often remembers later

- Gradually unable to follow written/ spoken directions - Is usually able to follow written/spoken directions

- Gradually unable to used notes as reminders - Usually able to use notes and reminders

- Gradually unable to care for self - Usually able to care for self