Spotting changes early matters. With an early diagnosis, people can look for causes, try treatments that may ease symptoms, and keep their independence longer.
One sign is not a diagnosis
The Alzheimer’s Association lists ten early warning signs. Everyone has off days. What matters is a pattern of changes that keep happening and get in the way of daily life.
Below, each sign is paired with what can be a usual part of getting older.
Memory and thinking
- Memory loss that disrupts daily life, such as forgetting new information or asking the same question again and again. Usual aging: forgetting a name or an appointment, then remembering it later.
- Trouble planning or solving problems, such as following a plan or working with numbers. Usual aging: an occasional mistake with a bill.
- Trouble finishing familiar tasks, such as driving to a place you know well. Usual aging: needing help with a new gadget.
- Confusion about time or place, such as losing track of dates or seasons. Usual aging: forgetting the day of the week, then working it out.
Seeing, words and misplacing things
- Trouble understanding what you see, such as judging distance or reading. Usual aging: vision changes from cataracts.
- New problems with words, such as losing track of a conversation or struggling to name a familiar object. Usual aging: sometimes searching for the right word.
- Losing things and not being able to retrace your steps, or putting things in unusual places. Usual aging: misplacing something now and then, then finding it by retracing your steps.
Judgment, mood and withdrawing
- Poor judgment, such as unusual choices with money or letting personal care slip. Usual aging: making a bad decision once in a while.
- Pulling away from work, hobbies or friends. Usual aging: sometimes not feeling like social events.
- Changes in mood or personality, such as becoming confused, suspicious, anxious or fearful. Usual aging: getting irritable when a routine is disrupted.
What to do
If you notice several of these signs, or one that keeps getting worse, make an appointment with a doctor. Bring a family member or friend if you can, because they may have noticed things you have not.
Many things can cause these changes, and some can be treated, such as low vitamin B12, thyroid problems, depression and medicine side effects. That is one more reason not to wait.
This list is not a test. Only a doctor can find out what is causing a change.