Dementia & Memory Problems:

Forgetting conversations or locking the car every now and then is not an indicator of a failing memory. However, when forgetfulness becomes incremental and starts to affect our day to day functioning, it may be a warning sign of dementia or some neurological condition and needs proper assessment.

Dementia is loss of thinking, remembering and reasoning that interferes with a person’s daily life and functioning. There are various types of dementia, most common of which is Alzheimer’s disease.

Common symptoms of Dementia: 

  1. Memory gaps, specially recent memory 
  2. Difficulty is recalling names 
  3. Difficulty in calculations 
  4. Inability to cope with new people or places, may get disoriented in a new environment 
  5. Impairment of judgement 
  6. Attention and focus difficulties 
  7. In advanced dementia a person may be unable to identify himself, may be unable to eat food, perform ablutions etc 
  8. Hallucinations 

Conditions associated with untreated memory problems: 

  • Difficulty communicating 
  • Poor personal hygiene 
  • Getting lost 
  • Occupational problems 
  • Relationship problems 
  • Untreated paranoia can lead to harmful behaviour