The Dementia Patient: Ten Things The Dementia Caregiver Needs (Wants) Them to Remember

by Vietnam Plants & America plants The sad reality of dementia is that the dementia patient gradually starts to forget. At first it seems like stres

... stress and improve the management of dementia patient behaviors that

by Vietnam Plants America plants

The sad reality of dementia is that the dementia patient gradually starts to forget. At first it seems like stress or fatigue may be the cause, but as the forgetfulness increases and other symptoms become evident the dementia caregiver may become nervous about some of the important information that could be lost in their loved one's memory.

While caring for a dementia patient it is easy to get caught up in the day to day tasks that can claim so much time. While preparing meals, making a safe environment, and tending to health care needs are important and very necessary there are other aspects of the dementia patient's care that must be taken care of also.

Schedule & Plans

We all lead busy lives. We have hobbies and interests and clubs and work obligations and friends and family and... A dementia patient's schedule doesn't suddenly empty because they become forgetful. If anything, it may become even fuller because they may double (or even triple) book themselves without realizing it.

Knowing your loved one's schedule and plans will help you to help them to organize their time and commitments.

Knowing where they will be at any given time has the added benefit of helping to keep them safe. If they don't show up for an appointment or if they are late returning home you will have valuable information to aid in a search for them.

Filing System

As their memory declines the dementia patient will require more and more help with financial, legal, personal, and professional paperwork. Knowing where to find pertinent information will be extremely helpful for the dementia caregiver.

Even if a dementia patient has kept meticulous records throughout their adult life the nature of dementia may cause them to become slack in putting papers where they belong or may even cause them to rearrange files.

Understanding how to use their filing system and helping them to keep it updated can save the dementia caregiver much time and stress.

Financial Information

While it may feel like you are prying into their affairs by asking about their income and their budget, financial mismanagement is one of the earliest signs of dementia problems. At some point the dementia patient will become unable to handle their own finances.

In the meantime they will still have bills to pay and possibly even debt that needs to be taken care of. The problem with becoming forgetful is that the dementia patient is likely to forget to pay bills on time or even at all while adding to their expenses buying things they don't need or giving away money they don't have to give.

As early as possible the dementia caregiver needs to learn about the financial affairs of their loved one and help the dementia patient to take the necessary legal steps to have someone take control of this area of their lives when it becomes necessary.

Insurance Information

As a person ages their insurance needs change. It may difficult at this point in a dementia patient's life to increase or add insurance where needed, but it is also possible that they may be over-insured in some areas. At one point my mother had six accidental death and dismemberment policies that she was paying premiums on each month.

Beyond the financial aspects of insurance bills there are the available benefits of the coverage they carry. Knowing what is covered and what is not covered, how to make a claim, which doctors they can see or can't see under their plan, whether or not other people are allowed to drive their vehicles, etc. is all valuable information that can either cost the dementia patient money or save them money.

Work with them to locate and understand all of their insurance policies.

Medical History

A written record of the dementia patient's medical history is critical. Knowing when they have had surgery or been treated for a particular disease can be invaluable in helping a doctor in making decisions about their current and future care.

Help them to compile a list of surgeries and medical treatments including all prescription medications they have taken or are currently taking. Looking through their files may provide some of this information if they are unable to remember it.

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Source : http://imentalhealth.net/mental-health-disorders/cognitive-disorders/the-dementia-patient-ten-things-the-dementia-caregiver-needs-wants-them-to-remember

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Commonly question about The Dementia Patient: Ten Things The Dementia Caregiver Needs (Wants) Them to Remember

Question :

Do I have dementia and/or Alzheimer s?

Alright first off, I would like to tell you that this is a serious topic regarding my health. I expect you all to respond in a professional manner, and joke around. If so, please leave this question.

Well, I m a 14 (soon to be 15) year old and a 10th grader. My whole life, I have been known as a forgetful person. I would put things in one place and forget where I placed a few minutes later. I would forget tasks at hand after I was stopped (for any reason) to work on other tasks. For example, my father drives me to a tutor, and I forget his notebook. I come back home, and before I grab the notebook, I go to the bathroom. After I m finished, I leave the house, forgetting to bring the notebook with me. It also takes me a little bit of time to remember the names of people I meet. I read that one of the earliest stages of Alzheimer s is when the patient first begins to notice that they forget places and people, and I am noticing. It is important to note that these events I explained do not happen ALL the time, but they happen enough to be noticeable. There is also an instance that cannot be explained. I ve remembered having these "problems" from when I was ten. On random occasions, I would have something I call "black outs". My mind would go blank for like a second, and then turn on again.My thoughts would escape from me, as I would forget what I was doing at the moment, where I was, and other information (the names of peoples, how to spell, forgetting certain words,names of peoples, etc). I would have a difficult time grasping on to thoughts. I would have a slight headache accompanied by nausea. But right as I would "black out", my vision becomes obscured. It turns completely black and it would slowly come back to me in a few seconds (I suspect that my eyes somehow roll back in my head and then slowly turn to normal). Don t get me wrong, it doesn t have a long term affect on me. After like an hour or two after the incident, I would continue functioning normally as if nothing ever happened. But, it really is a bother. I mean, this has happened in school and many other uncomfortable times where I need to think clearly. My parents and I went to a neurologist a few year ago.I got a CATS scan and said that my brain was just fine. The neurologist stated that I have migranes, as my mom also has them. But, she has never experienced anything like I do. To be honest, I don t really think that is a good enough answer. But, that might be a separate illness, or something similar. I am quite afraid of my future now, as I believe the symptoms will amplify in the future. Also (and I m not sure how helpful this is), my father has Parkinson s, and he is the first one in our family to get it. He contracted the disease before I was born, so there is a slight chance I might get it due to genetics. So, do you believe I have dementia? Or am I just being a worry wart and am just a forgetful person? I would rather have a medical professional answer this question (neurologist in particular), but if you believe you can answer this, then I m all ears. Sorry for making you read this much, and thank you in advance. GOOD LUCK ;D

Answer :
I m not a professional. Just know from my own experience that this sounds like no big deal. I am very forgetful too, but I also have issues focusing. I constantly jump tasks, and recently, I ve forgotten less. I m 14 too, so I know what school is like. As for the "black outs", I can t really help you there. Any time something like that happens, I wouldn t mess around with it. But I m on the paranoid side. Hope it helps.

Question :

What should I say to someone whos trying to rip me off? (Elderly Care)?

I started working for this guy occasionally since January, starting pay was $12/hour. He would call me 1 or 2 a week, sometimes more, sometimes less.. I would take care of his father who was 75 years old with Dementia. Anyone who knows someone with Dementia knows how difficult it is and how draining it can be.

Well he had me come over the other day to talk, he asked if I would be willing to work fulltime Monday-Friday 7:30am-5pm and I was ofcourse interested, this guy likes a total of ten minutes walking distance from my house, so the commute would be nothing..

WELL, the whole time I figured I was going to get paid $11/hour like usual... and after agreeing to the job, while we re wrapping things up, he mentions its $300 a week and no I didn t say anything, right then an there, but as soon as I left I was already thinking about what to sAy to him, i plan on calling him today and telling him I can t work that many hour for $300/week.

If you break down 47.5 hours for $300, that comes to less then $6.50 an hour. I would have to go to bed at 9-10pm, wake up at 6AM, be there by 7:30am, take the elderly man on walks, give him bathes, do his laundry, go to doctor appointments, cook then clean whatever dishes/mess was made, waste my whole week working with a dementia patient who isn t the easiest person to work for all so his son can pay me $300? NO.

I am definitly not taking the job unless he raises it to ATLEAST $450. I no he s definitly getting sometype of assistance/money for taking his father in his home so I think he s trying to pay cheap to he can pocket cash himself in the process and he s trying to find a sucker to do it and he says you can t call out or be late ever because he can t be late for work, lol.. He really thinks he s going to get a reliable person for that kinda money?

If anyone knows roughly how much someone gets paid for taking in a dementia patient to live with them. I m trying to figure out how much money this guy is getting so he can pay someone just so I can figure out how much he s trying to pocket for himself..I know it its different depending on your income, this guy isn t poor, he lives in a two-story-house, with security cameras, guns, alarms, big screens, motorcycle, decent car, etc.. He s just cheap..

I basically want to no what I should say? I already know certain things im definitly going to say but I d like some other options as well..

Answer :
Your reasoning is sound, logical and mature.

This guy IS trying to rob you.

I d insist on the original $12 per hour for every hour worked, with documentation for all work hours.

What a crook. I m glad you re holding your ground. Grrrr!..

Question :

Please help me decide what would be a better thesis subject for my Master s degree in Psychology...?

Suicidal ideation and one of the following conditions:

1) TMAU - Trimethylaminuria (TMAU), also known as fish odor syndrome or fish malodor syndrome1, is a rare and devastating metabolic disorder that causes a defect in the normal production of the enzyme Flavin containing monooxygenase 3 (FMO3).23 When FMO3 is not working correctly or if not enough enzyme is produced, the body loses the ability to properly break down trimethylamine (TMA) from precursor compounds in food digestion into trimethylamine oxide (TMAO) through a process called N-oxygenation. Trimethylamine then builds up and is released in the person s sweat, urine, and breath, giving off a strong fishy odor or strong body odor. The odor is not necessarily fishy, and the type of odor can vary from time to time. In that sense, the nicknames referring solely to a fishy odor are misnomers.

2) Early Onset Alzheimer s Disease - early onset Alzheimer s can develop in people who are in their 30 s or 40 s, but that is extremely rare. The majority of sufferers are in their 50 s, or early 60 s. Sometimes the term "early-onset dementia" is used, although Alzheimer s is a disease that is just one type of dementia. Alzheimer disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia and is invariably fatal, generally within ten years of the first signs. Normal aging involves forgetfulness, but the early signs of AD include unusual memory loss, particularly in remembering recent events and the names of people and things. As the disease progresses, the patient exhibits more serious problems, becoming subject to mood swings and unable to perform complex activities such as driving. In the latter stages they forget how to do simple things such as eating and brushing their hair. They eventually require care 24/7.

3) Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often referred to as "Lou Gehrig s Disease," is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. Motor neurons reach from the brain to the spinal cord and from the spinal cord to the muscles throughout the body. The progressive degeneration of the motor neurons in ALS eventually leads to their death. When the motor neurons die, the ability of the brain to initiate and control muscle movement is lost. With voluntary muscle action progressively affected, patients in the later stages of the disease may become totally paralyzed, and eventually suffocate to death.

Thank you for your help!!

Answer :
if your talking of suicidal ideation it would have to be no.1 the other would lead to death any way and lack of discernment of judgement. the first one you would be more able to be bothered by what other people noticed about you and be very aware of it which could lead to the ideation of suicide depending on who you were.