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Understanding the Progressiveness of Alzheimer's Disease

Most of us by now, have understood that anyone with Alzheimer's disease will progress through the stages of the disease. Are you sure you understand what to expect as you or your loved one makes the journey? We all know that life is a journey that we are all on and no one takes it quite alone...though at times it may seem that way. Certain, someone watching a loved one slip away feels that being alone is all that is left for them as they slowly forget people and places of their life. What can you expect the progression to look like, or how fast can you expect each stage of the disease to last? These questions and more are addressed in the following paragraphs.

The typical Alzheimer's patient can expect that the course of the disease will progress slowly and that the decline in cognitive abilities will occur in roughly 3 stages. In the early stage of Alzheimer's the individual will discover the symptoms that will spur him or her on to the road for discovering a diagnosis. Once the diagnosis has been given (Alzheimer's disease), the patient starts down the road with many questions. Loved ones will also have many questions, much like those you have as you read this article.

In the early stage of Alzheimer's the individual may forget words when in a conversation, or may find both social and academic situations to be very challenging because they easily forget the words they were going to say or they feel the need to make up words to replace the ones they can't remember. This situation may make them become withdrawn.

In the early stage behavior may be a little odd like discovering that they have placed a dish in the clothes dryer or the ice-cream carton in the dish cabinet. They may repeat the same question over and over. When they are overly tired or when something frustrates them they may become angry even if they are not normally the kind of person to easily anger.

Leaving the early stage of Alzheimer's disease individuals will exhibit an inability to follow written instructions, needing help to get dressed as they easily become confused as to what clothes to wear or how to put shoes on the right feet. They will lack proper judgment and may wonder off, easily getting lost. They can become restless and begin to repeat sentences or motions. They can show a change in personality which may include behaviors that are totally out of character such as being dishonest or exhibiting behavior such as screaming, biting, or kicking.

The last stage of Alzheimer's will find the individual needing daily care. They lack mobility and are not able to walk without assistance and may also require support in order to sit up. They are not able to control bladder or bowel habits. Their speech is incoherent and they more than likely no longer recognize familiar faces even those of close family members. They may choke easily as swallowing has become difficult. They may refuse to eat.

This last, severe stage of the disease usually happens within five years of the diagnosis but the progression of the disease varies from patient to patient with some progressing faster than what is typical of the disease. On average, an individual will live anywhere from 8 to 10 years after the diagnosis. Death usually occurs because of a complication of Alzheimer's such as from pneumonia, or as a result of an injury, or from an infection.