This morning, Julianne Moore won this year's Oscar for Best Actress for "Still Alice."
"Still Alice" is adapted from the novel of the same name, "I Miss Myself", which tells the story of Alice Howland, who has a successful career and a happy family, and at the age of 50, she finds that her memory is getting worse and worse, and she even gets lost in the place she knows best. The doctor diagnosed her with Alzheimer's disease, her memory could not keep up with the pace of forgetting, she gradually lost her mind, she also lost the connection with the external world, and the appearance of the world in her eyes was constantly changing...
What is Alzheimer's disease? It's not far from you and me.
As we get older, our parents/grandparents always become somewhat forgetful. How can we tell whether it's just harmless "people getting old" or more severe Alzheimer's disease? One in 8 elderly people over the age of 65 suffers from this incurable dementia. Early Alzheimer's disease may not even be noticeable to friends and family, but as long as we pay attention, we can still see some signs.
<h2>Is it really Alzheimer's? </h2>
In the earliest stages of Alzheimer's disease, the patient's long-term memory has not been affected, and the short-term memory may become blurred. Your loved one may show the phenomenon of "talking about the back and forgetting the front" when talking to you: he may repeat the questions you have already answered. Illness can also affect the smoothness of speech, and they may not be able to remember common words for a while.
In addition to amnesia, Alzheimer's disease can lead to mental confusion and behavioral changes. Your loved one may get lost in an area he knows. Mood disorders, judgmental disorders and poor personal hygiene are also common phenomena. A fashionable old man who was once fashionably dressed may begin to become unclean and disheveled.
It may be difficult for you to face the fact that your loved one may have Alzheimer's disease, but you should still consult a doctor early. First, perhaps the final diagnosis is not Alzheimer's, and similar symptoms can be caused by some fully treatable disease, such as thyroid disorders. Even if it is really Alzheimer's disease, current therapies are best implemented from the early stages of the disease.
<h2>Diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease</h2>
Imaging of the brain is an effective diagnostic tool.
Alzheimer's cannot be judged by simple tests, so doctors need you to help describe changes in your loved ones. Patients' mental function and short-term memory can be assessed by a mental status test, or "mini-cognitive test," or other screening [1]. In addition, we can also use neurological tests and brainwave scans to rule out problems such as stroke or brain tumors. These tests can also provide more useful information about the brain.
Note: [1]: Screening is a medical test used to detect severe disease without obvious symptoms in a large population, and a subset of non-patients can be quickly excluded at a lower cost, but a positive result only indicates a possible disease and requires a final diagnosis.
On the right is an image of the brain of an Alzheimer's patient, where the brain parenchyma atrophes and the ventricles enlarge.
Alzheimer's disease can lead to nerve cell necrosis and tissue loss of various parts of the brain. As the disease worsens, the parenchymal tissue of the brain gradually atrophises, and the ventricles (the spaces inside the brain that contain cerebrospinal fluid) gradually enlarge. The damage caused by Alzheimer's disease can hinder communication between brain cells, impairing memory, language and comprehension.
Every Alzheimer's patient develops inconsistently. Some people's condition deteriorates rapidly, and within a few years they develop severe amnesia and mental confusion. Some people will deepen their illness more slowly, possibly for 20 years. The average survival period after diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease is between 3 and 9 years.
<h2>Impact on daily life</h2>
Many patients experience a life inability to take care of themselves.
Alzheimer's can affect a patient's attention, so the patient may not be able to handle routine tasks such as cooking or payment. One study noted that the inability to manage one's own balance of income and expenditure is often an early sign of Alzheimer's disease. As symptoms intensify, your loved ones may not be able to recognize a familiar person or place. He may get lost easily or may not remember how to use various tools, such as combing his hair with a fork. Patients in advanced stages often experience a lack of self-care, inability to maintain balance, or aphasia.
Alzheimer's disease can make the patient's physical coordination ability worse, memory loss, and mental confusion, so it is very dangerous for patients to drive vehicles. If you feel that your loved one is no longer suitable for driving a vehicle, explain it frankly to him. If he doesn't listen, ask the doctor to help. If the patient insists on driving a vehicle, it is best to contact the traffic control department for an assessment and then come up with an alternative solution for his travel needs.
Physical exercise can not only help People with Alzheimer's disease maintain muscle strength and physical coordination, but also improve mood and perhaps reduce anxiety. If your loved one has Alzheimer's disease, it's best to ask your doctor what exercise is best. Repetitive activities such as walking, weeding, or folding clothes may be the best way to meditate.
Alzheimer's disease is incurable, and there is no known way to relieve nerve damage to the brain. However, there are also many drugs that may help maintain sanity and delay the deepening of the disease. If you can take this type of treatment in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, your loved one may be able to stay on their own feet and take care of daily affairs for a longer period of time.
<h2>Do a good job as his/her caregiver</h2>
As a relative of his/her, you may have to wear several hats, including as a cook and a nanny.
As someone caring for someone with Alzheimer's, you'll most likely need to wear a number of jobs — cook, driver, and finance. Maybe you have to help him arrange meals and take care of his finances, but you can also encourage him to do some activities on his own, such as labeling the contents of the cabinets and sticking daily tasks on a small note as a memo. Remember to buy a one-week pill box so that he can take the medicine regularly and quantitatively.
Early Alzheimer's patients tend to notice their condition and feel ashamed or anxious. Be aware of signs of depression at this time, as they can often be controlled with drugs. When the illness is more severe, your loved ones may become paranoid and violent, and may even suddenly attack you. Remember that this change is caused by a disease. You should immediately alert your doctor to this phenomenon of violence.
To avoid sunset syndrome, keep your home fully lit at dusk.
Some people with Alzheimer's experience pain or tension at dusk. This reaction lasts into the evening, sometimes throughout the night. The cause of this condition is unknown, but there are ways to reduce this tension, such as turning on the indoor lights before dusk, keeping them bright, and closing the curtains. You can also try to distract him with his favorite activities or TV shows, and control caffeine intake after breakfast.
Pasting photos of relatives and friends with names printed on them below can help with memorization.
Many people with Alzheimer's can't remember their names, not even their close family members. One temporary approach is to post photos of relatives and friends with names printed on the bottom where he can see them. Eventually, patients may no longer be able to recognize their appearance and treat their loved ones as strangers. This is likely to upset the patient's family, especially his primary caregiver.
Caring for someone with Alzheimer's is a onerous task, both physically and mentally. Caregivers may be under excessive stress, with signs including:
Anger, sadness, emotional impermanence;
Headache or low back pain;
Difficulty concentrating;
Difficulty falling asleep.
As a caregiver, you should pay attention: in order not to burn out physically and mentally, you should take a few minutes a day to do what you like. Stay sociable with friends as much as possible and stick to your preferences. It is best to find a friend or relative to be your backup. You can also participate in online or local groups of caregivers through the Alzheimer's Association.
<h2>The last thing you need to do</h2>
When your loved one is still able to make important decisions, contact a lawyer to help them draft a prenatal will. A prenatal will is a legal document in which a patient can indicate what treatment and end-of-life care they wish to receive. Patients should appoint someone to make medical decisions on their behalf and conduct financial management. That way, when your loved ones can no longer show their will, it won't cause chaos.
Many patients want to be able to stay home as much as possible. However, as their condition worsens, they may not be able to dress themselves, bathe or go to the toilet. Home health care workers can help patients with personal hygiene and other daily tasks. You can look for local elderly food delivery or mobility services, and most communities also have regional elderly service providers to provide this service. (Some countries still have more specialized nursing homes, but there doesn't seem to be such institutions in China.) ）
It may come to some point when your loved one will no longer be able to receive care at home. If he doesn't already need 24-hour care, he can be placed in an assisted-living facility (ALF). ALF can provide patients with shelter, meals and recreational activities, but at a much lower price than a nursing home. You can look for ALF with dedicated Alzheimer's Care services, which include 24-hour monitoring and dedicated care to meet the needs of people with dementia.
People with Alzheimer's may lose the ability to walk, talk, and respond to others. In the end, the disease will hinder the patient's life function, such as swallowing function. Patients at this stage need hospice care, which can alleviate the suffering of terminally ill patients and give them final peace and comfort.
Try to make your child understand the manifestations of the disease.
When someone in the family is suffering from Alzheimer's, the child may feel confused, scared, or even disgusted. We need to let the child understand that it is normal to have these feelings, and answer the child's questions about the disease frankly. At the same time, methods such as scrapbooks should be used to help children recall their happy memories with patients in the past.
Healthy eating and proper exercise are currently known prevention methods.
If you're caring for a loved one with Alzheimer's, you might be wondering if there's a way to reduce your chances of getting the disease. Research is still ongoing, but eating right and exercising in moderation seems to be key. Studies have shown that people who follow the Mediterranean diet — eating more vegetables, fish and nuts — are less likely to develop the disease. At the same time, studies have shown that people who exercise most often are the least likely to develop Alzheimer's disease.
If in 5 years your grandparents, 30 years later your parents, or even 50 years later your significant other stops paying attention to dressing up, never cooking again, or even getting lost, you may be sad, upset, and even desperate, but as long as you are prepared, these are not so terrible; when your loved one day does not recognize you, what you need to give is understanding and patience - it is just a disease that needs to be taken care of, he/she is still the one you love.
Accompanied by the strong love of her family, she bravely lives for every day and for the present. She can appreciate the beauty and love of life - she is still Alice Howlan, a strong woman.
This article is compiled from the webmd website article: When a Loved One Has Alzheimer's Disease
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