Tuesday, July 10, 2007

What is Alzheimer’s Disease, and Can Anything Be Done About It?

When people ask “What is Alzheimer’s?” the answer is usually just as confusing as the disease itself. If you’re someone looking for information about what alzheimer’s is, but you want it in laymen’s terms, read on.

Alzheimer’s disease, in short, is known to be memory loss and ultimately dysfunction of the brain. Although this short description rings true, it is not everything there is to know about what alzheimer’s disease is. By understanding the main elementals of what alzheimer’s is, you’ll be able to understand the medical aspect of the disease more easily.

So, What Exactly Is Alzheimer’s Disease?

Here’s the nitty gritty. What alzheimer’s disease is, is a brain disorder that not only inhibits the person’s ability to remember things, but the disease is also progressive in distorting the thought process, the ability to make decisions or even know where you are at times. In short, the person suffering from alzheimer’s disease will experience slow deterioration of the mind. Hallucinations and delusions are not uncommon when the disease has progressed a ways.

With millions of people around the world suffering from this disease, there has to be a cure, right?

What Can be Done?

Unfortunately, although so many people do suffer from alzheimer’s, there is currently no cure. Make no mistake that there isn’t a solution being worked on, but the breakthrough has yet to be found. However this doesn’t mean that there aren’t things you can do to help someone you know or love when it comes to alleviating some of the pain from the disease.

Knowing what Alzheimer’s is, is the first step. In the beginning stages of the disease, the most important thing you can do is learn all you can about it. Learn about signs and symptoms, what to expect from the person suffering from the disease, and learn to know that the disease doesn’t get better, it only gets worse. If you can recognize this fact and accept it, dealing with alzheimer’s is all that much easier.

In later parts of the disease, you can keep daily diaries for your loved one, and read it to them daily. Even if they’re at the point where they don’t remember much, reading them details of their life and the people in it works wonders for them and you. It’s a great form of therapy and a great place to start when dealing with alzheimer’s disease.

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