One-third of people over the age of 85 experience some form of dementia. This loss of cognitive functioning can cause significant distress and interfere with relationships, daily life, and rewarding activities.
A person experiencing dementia may show significant changes in behavior and can grow frustrated or emotional at tasks that used to be part of a routine.
Seeking help from a memory care facility can help people cope with the behavioral changes from dementia and increase the quality of life for memory-impaired seniors.
Causes and Symptoms of Dementia
There are several forms of dementia, and the causes are not yet completely understood. All forms of dementia seem to result in the loss of healthy neurons and neuronal connections in the brain.
While all adults lose neurons through the aging process, the loss rate is much higher in people with dementia. The most common forms of dementia include:
- Alzheimer’s disease
- Lewy body dementia
- Vascular dementia
- Frontotemporal dementia
- Mixed dementia, a combination of multiple forms of dementia
All of these forms of dementia share a similar set of symptoms. The primary symptom of dementia is a loss of cognitive functioning. This could present as memory loss, impulsive actions, getting lost, or difficulty speaking. This loss of functioning can lead to significant distress, which leads to changes in behavior.
Behavioral Changes in Dementia
Behavioral changes in dementia patients are widespread. People with dementia may become easily agitated, exhibit physical or verbal aggression, or show signs of restlessness and anxiety. Many experience significant emotional distress, and some experience delusions or hallucinations.
The behavioral changes in dementia can be significant enough to alter someone’s entire personality—even people who had an easygoing demeanor before their memory issues may become short-tempered or emotionally volatile.
The frustrations from their memory loss become an overwhelming burden, and many have difficulty living healthy and productive lives.
How to Deal with Changes in Behavior
Dealing with behavior changes starts with empathy for the person experiencing dementia. While it may be frustrating to caregivers or families that their loved one has a new personality, the challenges of dementia also put a significant burden on the person experiencing it.
There are several methods for dealing with changes in behavior due to dementia:
Remain Calm
Even if a particular situation is causing you to get frustrated, bringing extra negative energy to the situation is a sure way to spark agitation. Just as people are likely to raise their voices in a noisy room, people with dementia will often match the emotional energy that you’re putting out there.
Address Underlying Problems or Disorders
People with dementia frequently experience depression, anxiety, or medical problems that they have difficulty communicating. Finding treatment for these underlying conditions could help relieve their symptoms and help them feel better emotionally.
Manage the Environment
Highly stimulating environments can lead to feelings of anxiety, fear, or confusion. Look for environmental factors that upset your loved one, and adjust their environment to their preferences. Temperature, noise levels, or smells can all contribute to stress.
Have Realistic Expectations
Often, people expect that seniors with dementia can accomplish tasks outside of their ability. Cognitive impairment can make routine tasks substantial challenges and lead to agitation when the person can’t succeed.
While it’s important to encourage people with dementia to accomplish tasks on their own, you have to be able to adjust your expectations over time.
How Caring Places Engages People with Dementia
Caring Places goes to great lengths to actively engage with people experiencing dementia. Positive engagement can enhance the quality of life and emotional well-being of dementia patients and help them to improve their level of functioning despite their cognitive difficulties.
We accomplish this by catering our care to each patient’s specific interests and routines and remaining adaptable through disease progression.
We believe strongly that dementia is not the end of a happy life. With quality empathetic care, people with dementia can enjoy frequent social engagement and activities that bring joy and light to a difficult time.
Caring Places Management Dementia Care
Often, the demands of memory care become too much to handle at home. If this is the case for you, seeking professional help at a memory care facility may be the best choice for your loved one.
Caring Places Management has been helping seniors with dementia for over 30 years by providing comfortable living spaces, advanced medical care, and a team of compassionate caretakers.
When you’re ready to seek expert-level care for your loved one, get in touch with our team by phone or email. We understand how difficult it can be to see the personality changes brought about by dementia, and we’re here to help your loved ones in this difficult time.
By providing high-quality care, we can help your loved one enjoy the best possible quality of life after their diagnosis.
