My grandma has dementia?
My grandma is visiting for a few weeks with my aunt, and since my grandpa died three years ago, she is losing it. She pretends she knows what shes doing, when she 1st arrived i couldn't even tell anything was wrong. Then this morning she asked my aunt is she was going to work, and told her her new house is really nice. Its weird because she doesn't seem very old even. This may be a little selfish to ask but is this type of dementia hereditary? because she wasn't like this at all, until shortly after my grandpa died. Also, does it get worse fast? And is it life threatening?
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There are different kinds of dementia, and without knowing what the problem is, it's hard to say if it's hereditary. Early onset Alzheimer's has a genetic link, but when people get it in old age, there's no known link.
If she hasn't already seen a doctor, she should see one as soon as possible. There are treatments that can help some forms of dementia, and slow down progressive types like Alzheimers. She may have been like this before, and no one noticed until she experienced a lot of stress.
If it's Alzheimer's, there's no specific timeline. My grandmother has had it for at least 11 years, becoming progressively worse over the years. Sometimes it gets bad in just a few years, everyone is different. Eventually, people forget how to walk, talk, smile, sit up and even eat. In that sense, it's life threatening.. but just as many people die of old age before it gets that bad. Sorry for being so frank, but it helped me a lot to know what to expect.
There's a very helpful forum if you want to read more, or have questions you want to ask:
http://alzheimers.infopop.cc/eve/ubb.x
Sorry to hear that your aunt is not well this is a serious illness and yes it does get worse at first it will be slow to get worse but then it will come a little bit faster .Right now your Aunt might be ok but later on she will need 24 hour care and the patient (your Grandma) will not know or feel anything.Expect your Grandma to ask the same question many times even just after you answering her the first time. this will be annoying to you or the carer but dont worry your Grandma will be unable to tell anything is wrong and will be happy in her own world. This sometimes start's when a loved one dies.
Forgetting things is a normal part of aging, regardless of whether the individual suffers from dementia or not. I'm 22, and I forget stuff all the time. However, if you're really concerned about your grandma, and are unsatisfied with the doctor's diagnosis, I recommend you seek a second opinion.
Thats too bad....my grandmother passed away a couple weeks ago....I think she suffered with dimentia for years.....she was super old though...cant even remember the last time I saw her....I spoke to her on the phone about a year ago and she was pretty incoherant....she said something about how my granny doesn't have any teeth...I guess she was desperately lonely and looking for some sympathy...I heard she went to India on a pilgrimage and upon her arrival to some holy temple she walked into the water and threw her hands up in a sort of take me lord kind of fashion.
She was never the same after that from what I hear....then she passed away a few years later...its depressing and frightening if you really think about it...thats why its best not to and try and live a productive, healthy, loving life.
http://www.webmd.com/alzheimers/tc/dementia-topic-...
My gradma has alzheimers and this site really helped me. I hope it can help as well:]