Diagnosis needed ASAP

mzwhitwhit

My dad is showing signs of dementia. He forgets things so quickly. He’s very short-tempered. This has been going on for years. He’s in denial. His mom passed away in 2011. She suffered from Alzheimer’s. How do I go about getting him some help? Do I reach out to his doctor?

mabelgirl

Is there any ailment that your dad needs a doctor for? If so make an appointment with his doctor for the suspicion but tell your dad it’s for something else. The doctor should be able to administer a test that would warrant further neurological testing.

as you know there is no cure but medications to hopefully slow the progression as well as manage his behavior. My mother is very very short tempered and she also thinks there is nothing wrong with her, just that I am stealing from her and taking her stuff. I’ve learned it’s part of the disease and not denial. “Anosognosia is a neurological condition in which the patient is unaware of their neurological deficit or psychiatric condition. It is associated with mental illness, dementia, and structural brain lesion, as is seen in right hemisphere stroke patients.”

Also work on getting durable POA quickly.

prayers you get the help you need.

SusanB-dil

Hi mzwhitwhit - You can definitely reach out to his doctor. Who has the HIPPA accesses? If you are not on the HIPPA access list, you could still tell the doctor your concerns and what you are seeing. They just can't respond back. Definitely getting him to the doctor would be best, as other things should also be ruled out first, as there is so much that can mimic dementia, especially those early stages.

If he is reluctant to go, whomever he is most likely to listen to might be able to tell him he needs to for insurance purposes. Being in denial of deficits is not at all unusual. Over 70% of our LO's have anosognosia. This is not denial, but rather, their firm belief that nothing is wrong. Do not argue with him over it, as this can just further agitate and annoy him. Has he always been short-tempered, or is it getting worse? Do tell the doctor about that.

Do get paperwork in order - DPOA, Medical POA (can be written into the DPOA), and a will. Another major concern a lot of us have is the driving. If he is forgetting things, driving really needs to be looked at closely.

Anonymousjpl123

I would say reaching out to his doctor and power of attorney are good first steps.

Have you ever discussed it? I started by talking to my mom about “memory issues” without ever mentioning that it was anything other than part of aging. She completely denied it - which I later learned is anasognosia. You can google this, but it means many people with alz/dementia don’t know that anything is wrong.

I agree with ethers - to get the doctor appointment, it may be best use a “fiblet” - a little lie that is easier to tolerate. Annual checkup, for insurance, standard tests, etc.

One thing I will say is you are starting at the right time. The sooner the better. And reading these forums and about dementia will help a lot. Education is your friend.