Stages of dementia

Due to the different underlying diseases that can trigger dementia, different courses of the disease develop, which can be classified by stages. Often, however, the symptoms can be attributed to a general stage, which occur across all diseases. – Early stage: In the first stage, the patient becomes conspicuous mainly by a deterioration of the short-term memory.

Memories from the past can be recalled without any problems, but there are problems in internalising new information. Objects are often misplaced, new names are confused or dates are forgotten. The temporal orientation also diminishes – patients cannot give the exact date or day of the week.

Thinking becomes slower and cognitive abilities deteriorate. In this initial stage, the patient often notices the change and cannot explain it to himself. Negative feelings can develop from the failures caused by dementia.

The patient appears anxious and resigned, withdraws from his environment or becomes aggressive. The aggressiveness is often directed against relatives who also notice the changes and want to help. The fear of suffering from a mental illness is great among elderly people – they do not want to be labelled as “crazy”.

It is important to counteract this thinking through understanding. – Middle stage: In the middle stage, there is further loss of short-term memory, but also the first impairment of long-ago memories. The names of long-known people are confused and information is jumbled up.

New environments are problematic for many patients because of difficulties in orientation. This goes so far that dementia patients are no longer able to find their way around independently. There is an increased need for care.

Concentration decreases and thus also abilities like

The mental abilities are the first to be affected by the changes in the brain. Patients are overwhelmed with tasks and tire quickly. Complex questions or new problems can only be solved with difficulty and with increasing degree of illness not at all.

The cognitive strategies needed for this are missing. The memory is increasingly impaired, which influences performance in everyday life and social life. Things are increasingly misplaced and dates are confused or forgotten.

The patient’s ability to learn deteriorates increasingly, which means that new information cannot be processed and retained well. The temporal and spatial orientation is negatively influenced by the memory disorders. The date or the day of the week can no longer be named correctly.

Comprehensive thought processes and logical conclusions are disturbed and thus also the ability to judge or accept criticism. The latter problem often shows up on an emotional level. Patients become moody or fear the changes, which they often fully experience.

This can lead to various avoidance strategies in order to avoid corresponding situations in which the patients run the risk of failure. The first signs of incipient dementia can be gradual and therefore difficult to interpret. As patients may initially show fluctuating daily forms, some family doctors have no chance of expressing a corresponding suspicion.

Frequently, relatives, who in many cases are medical laymen, make a diagnosis regarding dementia. Even as a layman, it is possible to check whether there is a risk of dementia by observing various abnormalities. Dementia patients are often tired in the early stages and limited in their attention.

Complex tasks or puzzles can no longer be solved as well or only at a slower pace. This can be checked particularly well if the person in question enjoys doing crossword puzzles or other mental exercises. If the relative suddenly refuses to do them, this can be a sign of increased failure in the past and of incipient dementia.

Most sufferers notice the changes in the early stages and are ashamed of their inability. Furthermore, they may withdraw from their social life and avoid assistance. Furthermore, the memory is already limited at the beginning of the disease. Patients often misplace their belongings, forget on the way what their actual goal was or make mistakes about the date or day of the week. These deficits can lead to a temporal and local disorientation, which additionally burdens the patients’ minds and can lead to further retreat.