Dementia is such a shocking disease. Because the mental and behavioural changes happen so gradually in a sufferer, you’re left to watch your loved one slowly deteriorate before your eyes and you grieve every time they take a turn for the worst.

This is one illness that’s particularly close to home for me, having watched my mother-in-law suffer from this disease for over ten years. The first signs were small and subtle, but slowly became more frequent. Things such as leaving appliances on, repeating herself in conversation, and paranoia all gradually got worse until eventually she had to be placed in a high care home that caterers for dementia and Alzheimer’s patients. My father-in-law looked after her for as long as he could (and did an amazing job) but the eventual strain took its toll on him. I also watched my wife grieve every time she saw her mom slip down further. The day her mom forgot who she was, was especially hard for her.

I must admit, I never liked going into the dementia ward at that home. Seeing so many patients walking around like zombies was incredibly sad (not being disrespectful here but that’s exactly how they look). Many of these people were doctors, lawyers, nurses, engineers, once upon a time, and now they couldn’t even remember their own name. The hardest part for us was my mother-in-law passed away before we discovered there were actually natural remedies available for treating dementia (and that many were producing some truly astonishing results). Hindsight is always a wonderful thing though.
Symptoms of Dementia…

The most common symptoms of dementia have to do with memory loss. Very often a sufferer will know their memory is fading and will try to hide it or cover up their forgetfulness and inconsistencies. Others (such as my mother-in-law) will not even know, and it will be their friends and family who begin to pick up and see the signs. Here’s a list of some of the more common signs and symptoms that start to appear in dementia patients…

Recent Memory Loss and Forgetfulness - Such as asking the same question repeatedly and forgetting that it’s already been asked. Repeating sentences.
Difficulty With Everyday Tasks – For example, making a simple beverage such as a cup of tea or coffee, or cooking a meal, then forgetting about it and leaving it.
Communication Problems - Difficulty with language. Forgetting simple words or using the wrong ones. Slurring.
Disorientation With Where They Currently Are – For example, getting lost on a once familiar street and forgetting how they even got there (or how they’re going to get home).
Poor Judgement – Such as looking after a child then forgetting about them and going off to do something else.
Generalized Thinking Problems – Dealing with money, using credit cards, etc.