Dementia In Today's Society

As we age in today’s society many people become prone to more diseases that are impairing their brains and physical functioning. Many elderly are suffering from dementia. This is where the loss of thinking, memory, and reasoning skills are taking place, and a person is significantly impaired to carry out their daily tasks. Symptoms include the inability to remember information, asking the same questions over and over again, becoming lost or confused in familiar places, being unable to follow directions, or neglecting personal safety, hygiene, or nutrition (National Institute on Aging, 2009). Some types of dementia include; vascular dementia which is reduced blood flow to parts of the brain that causes impairment. Another kind called multi-infarct
In the United States it is the 6th leading cause of death. One in eight older Americans has this disease. The severity of this disease increases with age; it continues to be progressive and cannot be slowed down or cured. People below the age of 60 are less affected by it; being that fewer than 2% of them develop the disease. Whereas, those between the ages of 85 to 100 an estimated 30% to 50% of them experience some symptoms. Alzheimer’s is a degenerative disorder which attacks the nerve cells in the brain. This results in loss of skills such as language, cognitive skills, decision making ability, judgment, memory, thinking, and behavioral and personality changes. There are two types of Alzheimer’s; early onset and late onset. Early onset which is mostly genetic usually develops before the age of 60. This tends to be less common; however it progresses at a rapid pace. About more than 200,000 people in the United States develop early onset. People who have early onset Alzheimer's may be in any stage of dementia; early stage, middle stage or late stage. The disease affects each person differently and symptoms will vary (Alzheimer’s Association, 2011). Late onset is the most common of this disease accounting for 90 percent of the cases. The development of this type is after the age of
When they had crashed Deloris hit her head very hard on the dashboard and since then she has not been the same. The accident caused her much trauma. She started to forget things, and she did not know what happened to her during the accident. Unfortunately Enrico passed away a few days after the accident, and their house was put up for sale, so Deloris moved in with her children. She was diagnosed with severe dementia and she was unable to take care of herself. Each week they would rotate her to each one of her children’s houses to take care of her. Then one day she moved in with her daughter and she provided the care for her. When people with dementia are cared for at home by their spouse, children, or other relatives, three spheres of functioning intersect: home life, intimate or close relationships, and custodial care (Development Through Life, 2012). It became hard for her daughter because she worked and had her own kids to take care of so they finally decided to put her in a nursing home. Till this day Deloris is still in a nursing home she rarely remembers anyone, sometimes she recognizes my grandmother and grandfather. She cannot perform any of the self-care activities herself. She needs to be washed, dressed, fed, brought to the bathroom, etc. After seeing the experience that she went through it makes me really see what a person with dementia or Alzheimer’s goes