I'm confused about the various stages of dementia. I know that they're different in every case but knowing where my mum is roughly would help us plan for the future. I wondered if i gave a description of mum, some of you would be kind enough to give me your thoughts. Mum is 84 and was diagnosed with Vascular Alzheimer's in January of last year but she had been having tests for a long time before that. The dementia was apparent for at least two years prior to that but it's hard to remember when and how changes happen. She is living at home with the help of my brother and I, she does not shower or clean her teeth unless the carer comes and then it's a fight. She does not take any interest in housework or cooking but will wash up (badly) after every meal, She does know family members but recently asked when one of them would be coming home when they were sat on the chair in front of her. She repeats herself often, frets and worries over certain fixations, she cannot remember days or dates and often asks the same question over and over again. Strangely her eating habits have completely changed recently, she used to eat very little but now does not stop scoffing and all things that she would not touch before like sugary biscuits, she will demolish an entire packet of chocolate digestives and yet she stays very thin. She can move around the house and climb the stairs but cannot walk far outside. She can be quite aggressive, particularly with me and the doctor has prescribed risperidone, which is of some help. She loves to chat with people but only for a very short time before she withdraws, even from close family members. Would anyone care to stick a finger in the wind and say where on the scale she might be, so many of you seem to know so much more about this than I do. Thank you.
Stages of Dementia
- Thread starter taliahad
- Start date
Hi @taliahad , I don't know if this link will be helpful to you:
www.alzinfo.org
As you said the way dementia progresses is not predicable. From how you've described your mother she is more or less at the stage my mother was when she went into care. I didn't live with her and mum was sort of managing, but didn't really do housework or I think eat much. She'd go out everyday to Marks for a coffee and scone and I think that was sometimes all she ate. She sort of did her own personal care though. Mum's moods were very unpredictable and that was one of the reasons for her going into care as she could have total meltdowns that put her and others around her in danger. She was also going off drinking with random men in the local pub and bought at least one of them home.
As for how long things could go on, mum is now in a care home, her mobility is bad and I can't understand what she says. Physically she is still pretty good for her age (93) though, and I can well see her making 100.
Clinical Stages of Alzheimer’s
New York University’s Dr. Barry Reisberg outlines the seven major clinical stages of Alzheimer’s disease. Dr. Reisberg is the Clinical Director of New York University’s Aging and Dementia Research Center.
www.alzinfo.org
As for how long things could go on, mum is now in a care home, her mobility is bad and I can't understand what she says. Physically she is still pretty good for her age (93) though, and I can well see her making 100.
It’s impossible to say but the fact that your mother is eating well, is quite mobile and can talk and do things rather suggests that she could live for a while yet. In the later stages of dementia people tend to have poor appetites, are not really mobile, have very limited speech and spend much of the time sleeping. Vascular dementia does tend to have bigger ‘drops’ than AD which tends to progress along a more gradual decline.
