Alzheimer's disease does not progress quickly, and early warning signs may not be easy to see. Many times what people feel is just a normal experience of forgetfulness may actually be the first signs that there is a more serious cognitive issue developing. When you know the first signs of the person you love, it gives them the opportunity to be diagnosed early, treated early, you can adequately prepare for their future care. Here are 10 common early signs of Alzheimer's disease.

Memory Loss That Affects Daily Life

Forgetting information or something learned recently, important dates, or asking for the same information over and over constitutes a common first sign of Alzheimer's. This kind of sign is different than occasionally forgetting something. Forgetting or having small lapses will definitely interfere with the day-to-day experience for someone impacted by Alzheimer's.

Issues with Planning or Solving Problems

They may have trouble with a recipe they know, managing monthly bills, or even staying focused on numbers and concentrating. Their ability to direct a simple process like cooking has become a time-consuming series of complicated actions with many mistakes.

Problems Completing Familiar Tasks

Things like driving to a familiar place, handling budgeting, or remembering how to use the washing machine become unfamiliar, confusing, and overwhelming.

Confusion with Time or Place

They will likely lose track of the date or may forget what season it is. They may lose recall of what place they are in or how they got there. While each sign can develop into severe behaviors, the territorial sign is the common–distorting time and place is the hallmark.

Difficulty Understanding Visual Images or Spatial Relationships

They may have problems reading or judging distances, or they may have difficulty recognizing colors. This problem too can cause safety issues when driving or navigating through public spaces.

Problems Speaking or Writing

Someone may suddenly not know simple words and may not even realize they have repeated themselves, and they may abruptly stop without knowing they had stopped. Their sentences may even seem jumbled when written.

Misplacing Things and Losing the Ability to Retrace Steps

They can find something in unusual places in their home (like the remote in the refrigerator). And later, they cannot remember how they got there or where their item is. By this time, it is even possible they suspect someone in the house took it from them ("someone stole it").

Decline in Judgment or Decision Making Abilities

Alzheimer's can decline one's ability to make decisions. For instance, a person could give away large amounts of money, follow scams (or be a scam artist), not groom themselves or take care of their hygiene. Once loved one's hallucinate or have hallucinations, it might complicate distinguishing between a lack of judgment and poor perception of their reality.

Withdrawal from Work or Social Activities

They may have stopped going to sporting events, hobbies, or social activities or engagement, and or they stop all together in engaging in the conversation.

Withdrawal From Work or Social Activities

They will rapidly change from a person who showed little mood changes (i.e., agitation, anxiety, or depression) to a person who has rapidly or frequently displayed those behaviors. They may become suspicious, fearful, or irritable, and can even change very rapidly. Changes in mood and personality can be confusing for family members and caregivers.

When to Seek Help

If you or a loved have noticed multiple symptoms, do not ignore them. Some of the memory issues and lapses may be a part of normal aging, or new normal as one's cognitive health progresses; but Alzheimer's is significantly different than normal aging and gets worse over time. In some cases, the doctor may begin utilizing cognitive tests or brain scans to assess what is truly happening and to help identify possible treatment.

Conclusion

It is critically important to identify Alzheimer's disease early to help delay its progression, and to maintain quality of life. While these 10 warning signs may be subtle, once families and caregivers begin to identify warning signs, the family will communicate with each other about dementia, regardless of the deteriorating condition of their loved one. The events that occur in the family will elicit compassion and support for their loved one experiencing signs of dementia.

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