Alzheimers Disease Essay - 1479 Words

Alzheimer’s Disease Imagine waking up one morning and you cannot remember where you are or your own child’s name. This could be a direct sign that you or a family member has Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s disease is a form of dementia, which means that it affects certain functions of the brain such as memory, logic, and everyday bodily functions. This disease was first described by a doctor named Alois Alzheimer in 1906. He discovered unusual growths of fibers in the brains of woman that had died from an unusual mental illness (National Institute, 1995). Many people do not realize how severe this disease really is. These people also do not realize how much of a risk there is of developing the disease. Four million people†¦show more content†¦A few years ago, I went to Thanksgiving dinner at my grandmother’s house. My whole family knew that my great aunt had Alzheimer’s, but no one knew how bad it had gotten. My aunt and I always had great conversations about life, but when I went to say â€Å"hello† to her, she did not even know my name. She could hardly remember anybody’s name, and we were all her closest family. What made things look even worse was half way through dinner she remembered my name, only to say, â€Å"Noah can you pass the mashed potatoes?† About two minutes later, she had once again forgotten my name. Believe it or not this disease gets even worse. People with Alzheimer’s can eventually start forgetting to do their everyday tasks such as brushing their teeth, combing their hair, and a person can even forget when to go to the bathroom. After a while, a person may need 24 hour a day care. Many times a spouse or an offspring will take the job of a patient’s caretaker. The job of the caregiver is a very tolling one. This person needs to totally devote him of her self to the job. Shenk (2001 p. 15) interviewed a caregiver, who stated, â€Å"She needs to be watched every second, as she wants to go home and has attempted to walk there many times. Of course ‘home’ is always in a different place, depending on where her memory of herShow MoreRelatedAlzheimers Disease945 Words   |  4 PagesAlzheimer’s Disease Alzheimer’s Disease is a progressive neurological disease; it often attacks the brain tissues causing memory loss of one’s identity and regular behaviors. Statistics indicates that the rate of predicted people to get Alzheimer’s will increase briskly as time goes on. There are currently no cures for such disastrous disease, but there are currently approved treatments available that can help people within the early stages of Alzheimer’s. Once the disease is too far alongRead MoreAlzheimers Disease3170 Words   |  13 PagesThe Role of Caregiving to Patients with Alzheimer’s Disease Megan Zann April 27, 2012 Health Psychology Dr. Ackerman Introduction It is normal to periodically forget your keys or a homework assignment, because you generally remember these things later. However, individuals who suffer from Alzheimer’s disease may forget things more often, but they do not remember them again. The incidence of Alzheimer’s disease has dramatically increased because people are living longer. This is a result ofRead MoreEssay on Alzheimers Disease1503 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"Alzheimer’s disease is a form of dementia that gets worse over time. It leads to nerve cell death, and tissue loss throughout the brain. Over time, the brain shrinks dramatically, affecting nearly all its functions. 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Alzheimer’s is usually diagnosed in people over the age of 65, but in rarer cases people as young as 16 have it. Since it is a degenerative disease, patients develop it with few symptoms at an earlier stage, but thenRead More Alzheimer’s Disease Essay1176 Words   |  5 PagesAlzheimer’s Disease Alzheimer’s Disease is a disease of the future. With the growing aged population, this disease, which affects primarily the elderly, will become of increasing relevance to the medical profession. Also, the high frequency of Alzheimer’s, and the high cost in labor, money, and material of caring for its victims shall put considerable burden on the society as a whole. Here, however, these issues are not going to be debated. Instead the pathology of Alzheimer’s will be reviewed