I think my 76 year old Dad has alzheimers.

[Alister]

Hello,

My name is Alister. I am concerned that my 76 year old Dad has alzheimers or dementia. I have noticed changes in him over the past year. They were small to begin with and I just put it down to age but now I can really notice them.
Over the past month he appears agitated, irritated, looks grumpy/angry most of the time. Disengaged/Disinterested when I or my Mum say anything. Sleeps a lot of the time but says he isn't sleeping. I think he's in denial, I've tried to talk to him about my concerns but became very defensive and hasn't spoke to me since. I don't know what to do next. Any help or suggestions would be welcome. He's also lost a lot of weight.

 

[Sarasa]

Welcome to Dementia Support Form @Alister.
There are things other than dementia that could be awry with your dad, the weight loss is worrying for instance. What other people have done is either piggyback a regular appointment at the GPs or written to the GP with their concerns and ask if the person they are worried about can come e in for a 'well man' check. My surgery has been asking me about my blood pressure recently and there seems to be a campaign on to get older people to get theirs checked out, you could use that as an excuse. In either case write a bullet pointed list to the GP with your concerns. It might also be worth keeping a diary as so many things that are worrying at this stage seem fairly minor unless you look at them all together.
What does your mum think? Do you live at home or just visit. If you visit your mum might be withholding her worries from you as she doesn't want to worry you.
This is a very friendly and supportive community and I'm sure others will be along soon with their tips and suggestions.

 

[Alister]

Welcome to Dementia Support Form @Alister.
There are things other than dementia that could be awry with your dad, the weight loss is worrying for instance. What other people have done is either piggyback a regular appointment at the GPs or written to the GP with their concerns and ask if the person they are worried about can come e in for a 'well man' check. My surgery has been asking me about my blood pressure recently and there seems to be a campaign on to get older people to get theirs checked out, you could use that as an excuse. In either case write a bullet pointed list to the GP with your concerns. It might also be worth keeping a diary as so many things that are worrying at this stage seem fairly minor unless you look at them all together.
What does your mum think? Do you live at home or just visit. If you visit your mum might be withholding her worries from you as she doesn't want to worry you.
This is a very friendly and supportive community and I'm sure others will be along soon with their tips and suggestions.

I was in the military based in England for 25 years but have recently moved back home to Northern Ireland. I'm living with my parents my Mum told me the other day that she had noticed changes in him but couldn't work out what might be causing it but I think she's trying to protect me from it. I've started writing bullet points down but I don't know who his GP is as he has always been a very secretive person but always wants to know everyone else's business.

 

[Spottydog]

There are many potential causes to his behaviour some of which are reversible. The weight loss is a concern. I would recommend keeping thoughts of dementia out of it and going more down the route suggesting that it might be a simple non controversial problem that could be easily treated following a simple blood test, e.g. Low iron. It sounds like you need to work with your mum to come up with a plan to get him in front of his GP.