7 Dementia Stages | Visiting Angels Home Health Care Omaha
Health professionals sometimes discuss the 7 Dementia Stages, which refers to how far a person’s dementia has progressed. Doctors determine the best treatment approach and communication between health providers and caregivers by identifying an individual’s disease stage. None, Mid Stage, Late Stage Dementia.
7 Dementia Stages | Visiting Angels Home Health Care Omaha
Dementia: Stages 1 – 3
Dementia Stage 1
People with no dementia diagnosis are considered in this stage. There is no memory loss, behavioral problems, or anything else associated with the onset of dementia. The person functions normally and is mentally healthy without signs or symptoms.
Dementia Stage 2
Caregivers may start to notice some level of forgetfulness, but symptoms of dementia are still not apparent to medical professionals or loved ones. There is a very mild cognitive decline and a normal forgetfulness that is often attributed to normal signs of aging. Caregiving is about finding a balance between independence and assistance. Caregivers should assume a person in this stage can accomplish a given task on his or her own, unless there is an immediate risk to safety.
Dementia Stage 3
Mild Cognitive Decline. At this stage, signs of cognitive decline may be noticed accompanied by increased forgetfulness, decreased performance at work, speech difficulty, and difficulty focusing on everyday tasks. It is crucial that caregivers recognize the signs of this stage for early diagnosis and intervention. This stage is also known as mild cognitive impairment (MCI).
Symptoms of mild cognitive impairment
- Increased memory loss
- Driving difficulties
- Verbal repetition
- Decreased work performance
- Trouble concentrating, problem solving, and managing complex tasks
Early-Stage Dementia Stage 4
Moderate Cognitive Decline. This stage lasts an average of 2 years and cognitive issues can be detected during a medical interview and exam. People in this stage will have difficulty concentrating, will forget recent events, and will have difficulty managing finances and traveling alone to new locations. Additionally, they may experience difficulty socializing and begin withdrawing from friends and family. In this stage, caregivers should make a concerted effort to actively engage the person with dementia. Caregivers will have a more involved role in this stage and subsequent stages. Caregivers should create a daily care plan and make adjustments to schedules as needed to provide the necessary level of care while also seeking physical and emotional support from other caregivers.
Symptoms of early-stage dementia
- Losing track of the day, date, or time
- Forgetting recent conversations or events
- Misplacing items
- Struggling to find the right words in a conversation
- Trouble remembering names when meeting new people
- Unwilling to try new things
- Loss of interest in other people or activities/
- Increased feelings of anxiety, irritability, or depression
- Forgetting recent conversations or events
- Increased trouble planning or organizing
Mid-Stage Dementia Stage 5-6
Comprised of two stages: Stage 5 moderately severe cognitive decline and Stage 6 severe cognitive decline or middle dementia, make up what is known as Mid-Stage Dementia.
Dementia Stage 5
A person in mid-stage dementia now needs assistance to complete activities of daily living. Lasting an average of 4 years, signs and symptoms of dementia will be very easy to identify. Throughout activities of daily living. Short-term memory will be mostly lost, and confusion and forgetfulness will be more pronounced.
Dementia Stage 6
In this stage a person may start forgetting the names of close loved ones and have little memory of recent events. Communication is severely disabled, and delusions, compulsions, anxiety, and agitation may occur.Symptoms of mid-stage dementia
- Changes in sleep patterns may begin
- Difficulty with perception
- Increased aggression and irritability
- Problems sleeping and confusing day and night
- Behaving inappropriately in social settings
- Wandering or becoming lost
- Delusions and/or hallucinations
- Inability to recall personal history, address, and phone number
Dementia Stage 7
The final stage of dementia is a very severe cognitive decline and lasts an average of 2.5 years. A person in this stage usually has no ability to speak or communicate and requires assistance with most activities, including walking. During this stage, caregivers will focus mostly on providing comfort and quality of life. Since around-the-clock care will be needed, care options may exceed what you feel you can provide at home.
- Gradual loss of speech
- Angry outbursts due to confusion
- Restlessness
- Increasingly vulnerable to infections, especially pneumonia
- Considerable changes in weight (both loss and gain
- Incontinence
- Difficulty eating and swallowing
While the exact symptoms displayed in each stage can differ from person to person, this assessment can be used as an outline, helping families know what to expect and when to expect it.
Visiting Angles Omaha | How to Get Started with In Home Health Care In Omaha
Getting started is easy. Simply get in touch with one of our local home care offices. We can match your loved one with a caregiver who can provide the assistance they need. Respite care is offered on an hourly basis so you can establish the frequency and scope of care that best meets your needs. Because our home care services are flexible, should your loved one require more engaged care in the future, we can expand our role to include:
At Visiting Angels, we’re here to be your caregiving partner. Find out more about our in-home respite care services by connecting with a local office today.