Chapter 6: Dementia

Image by Fisher Center of Alzheimer's
Research Foundation

Dementia is another topic that interests me because my parents started to notice some memory loss and confusion in my grandma. Sometimes she would forget that she had taken her pills and would take them twice. She would get confused about what time of the day it was. She never forgot who people were, but it was still strange. My parents constantly worried about her and even hired in-home care to be there as often as possible to administer her medications and monitor her activity. Even more strange was that this memory loss and confusion started shortly after visiting the doctor. It turned out that one of the medications the doctor had prescribed her was causing a whole list of new symptoms, including the dementia and confusion. Luckily, this happens to be one of the types of dementia that can be reversed. As noted in our text, some types of reversible dementias include memory loss caused by drugs, alcohol, nutritional deficiencies, brain tumors, and depression (pg 243). Examples of irreversible dementia include Alzheimer's, Huntington's, and Pick's disease.

The link below will take you to an article that looks at the effects on kids who have grandparents with dementia. The article was published in the Journal of Family Issues in 2012. It is interesting to see how these changes can effect all generations, from the patient themselves, to the child of the patient, and all the way down the line to the grandchildren. Click on Linked Full Text in the upper left when the window opens.

When Grandparents have Dementia: Effects on Their Grandchildren's Family Relationships

Here is another article that studies the effects on sleep patterns of the person caring for a parent with dementia. Written by Cherie Simpson and Patricia Carter, the article was published in the Journal of Clinical Nursing in 2013. Click on Linked Full Text in the upper left when the window opens.

Dementia Behavioural and Psychiatric Symptoms: Effect on Caregiver's Sleep

The video below called "Identifying the Signs of Dementia" provides some very good information about recognizing and treating, risk factors, prevention, and being a good caregiver when dealing with a parent who has dementia. The video is by Monica Bush, a national certified care manager. She has been a social worker for 23 years and was an administrator for an Alzheimer's Secure Facility for 5 years.

To find more information about dementia, check out http://www.alz.org/what-is-dementia.asp. This website provides helpful information about the symptoms, causes, and treatments for dementia.

Also visit http://www.caregiver.org/caregiver/jsp/content_node.jsp?nodeid=391 for helpful tips on how to provide care for people suffering from dementia. It gives advice on communicating with those with dementia and on how to handle troubling behavior like wandering and paranoia.