Shifts in behaviour can be challenging to manage. Experts have five strategies that can help. Susan Hirsch was visiting her father in the hospital where he was recuperating after a fall and was shocked to find him – long devoted to her mother – flirting with a nurse as if he were “17 aain”, she said.
Hirsch, a 67-year-old memory care educator from Palmyra, Pennsylvania, scolded her father. But the admonishment only enraged the 93-year-old man; she recalled him saying, “in not nice words”, to get out of his room as she scuttled away. More than 11 million adults in the US are caring for people diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia.
In addition to memory loss, most people with dementia will experience mood and behaviour changes including aggression, apathy, disorientation, depression, wandering, impulsivity and delusions. Many caregivers describe mood and personality changes as the most upsetting symptoms. While antipsychotic and sedative medications are often used to manage dementia-related mood issues , they have limited efficacy.
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