My 36 year old sister has been diagnosed with Alzheimers disease, obviously we are all devestated.....?

Question

Will we be able to care for her at home or will she need to go into a home, she is in the early stages, what does the future hold?

Answer 1

I'm so sorry. My mother-in-law has it and is now in the late stages. Round the clock care is usually necessary when the disease is more advanced. In the meantime get your sister to use memory aides, post-it notes, a tape recorder - anything which prompts her. And do contact the Alzheimers Society. They are very helpful and offer local support. Good Luck and my best wishes to you and your family.x

Answer 2

I am sorry to hear that, I know that it can start very early in some cases. Yes she could be cared for at home, depending on the surroundings and who will be able to look after her. I think the longer she can be kept at home the better, as long as she is safe, but at some stage she may need to go into a home because they will be able to deal with her specific needs. I hope that you all as a family support her and her main carer in every way possible. Also ask for help and find out all u can about the illness. I am glad u r able to come on here and tell us that she has this illness as a lot of people are in denial and cannot face telling anybody until its obvious to all. Well done!
Look at this site I hope this will help, u can also join the Alzheimers Society. Good Luck
http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/

Answer 3

I'm so sorry to hear of your sister's diagnosis. I can well imagine that the whole family is devastated.

I guess, from reading the responses that you've already got, you'll appreciate that to be diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease at such a young age is not common. There is, however, early onset Alzheimer's disease (EOAD), which does affect people this young. To be frank, there is some controversy at the moment as to whether Alzheimer's can be confirmed prior to death as, up until recently, it was believed that the only way to confirm it was on post-mortem. What I will say is that Alzheimer's disease is only one of a number of dementias ... dementia being organic brain failure from one reason or another.

Most dementias follow a similar pattern whereby the sufferer will progressively lose brain functioning ability. This can be seen by:

• Mild - At the early stage of the disease, patients have a tendency to become less energetic or spontaneous, though changes in their behaviour often goes unnoticed even by the patients' immediate family.
• Moderate - As the disease progresses to the middle stage, the patient might still be able to perform tasks independently, but may need assistance with more complicated activities.
• Severe - As the disease progresses from the middle to late stage, the patient will undoubtedly not be able to perform even the simplest of tasks on their own and will need to be supervised with everything they are doing.

I have no doubt that, from what you've already learned, you'll appreciate that Alzheimer's disease is a progressive illness ... meaning that the condition gets progressively worse over time. In the early stages, and from my experience of having worked with people suffering various dementias, it will, undoubtedly, benefit your sister to stay within an environment that she knows, surrounded by people that she knows, and following a routine that she knows. If she were to be admitted to a residential home, all of that would change in an instant. There would be all sorts of ideas running through her head, such as: "Why?" "What have I done to deserve this?" "What's the matter, don't my family love me any more?"

If you type "Alzheimer's disease" (without the speech marks) into any search engine, you will find literally millions of hits.

Even though you will find plenty of sites telling you that the condition can be reversed, I would ask you to bear in mind that these people are simply after your money. As far as I'm aware ... and as far as the top medical professionals around the world are concerned, there is no way to reverse the process. There are, however, claims that taking certain supplements will slow down the process.

I have quite a few articles, mainly written by others, that I have downloaded from the internet and saved on my hard drive. (They're saved in Microsoft Word format, but I can change these in order to be read by virtually any word processor.) If you'd like copies of them, please send me your email address and I'll forward them. If not written by myself, they do have links to the pages where they were obtained from. If you're interested, simply click on my avatar/photograph and you'll see that you can email me via Yahoo! Answers.

One last thought for you, do let your sister know that you love her. If she progresses quickly, who's to say how long it will be before she doesn't comprehend what you're saying?

Take care.

Answer 4

I'm so sorry to hear this. Whether you can care for her at home depends on her progress and whether you feel you can cope. In the later stages, you may feel that the stresses are just too great and she will need dedicated nursing care. Some ppl with Alzheimers wander, or get very aggressive, and may need to go into care earlier. Others are quite passive, and easier to care for.

Do consider joining the Alzheimers Society [they have a website] for advice and help. Your council may run carers' groups and/or respite schemes to give you a break. Contact their Welfare Rights officer to check the benefits you will be entitled to. At some stage you will probably be entitled to Attendance Allowance at least.

Good luck honey, and well done for not casting her off like a worn out shoe. xx

Answer 5

only because I know somebody this happened to:
Given the age, ask them to also check for thrombosis

Now, the meds for Alzheimer & for those same sypmtoms for thrombosis are gonna be the same anyway... but if it is Thrombosis.. then you/she/your family need to know and there is additional treatment she will need.

Alzheimer in it's own... is difficult but not deadly
Thrombosis... can be deadly if not treated properly

So please... HAVE that checked out!!!

My friend, she was diagnosis alzheimers when she was 28. When she was 39, she ended up in ER, there they discovered had been thrombosis all along.. because it wasn't caught earlier, she has brain damage (due to not enough blood and oxygen).. this is damage she would not have had if the problem was Alzheimers & not Thrombosis

Whatever type of thrombosis this is, it is apparently rather rare: therefore, often unknow to the docs treating.

2 simple blood tests... both need to be done.. and then they can either rule out or rule in Thrombosis

Susan, my freind, is now 45. She still lives at home with her husband. Her boys are both now grown, yet come & check on her from time to time.

Answer 6

I'm really sorry to hear that especially in such a young person. My Nana had Alzheimer's and at 1st she seemed to manage it well but as she got older it got worse.(my Nana was in her late 60s when she got it) You should try and keep things as normal as possible for your sister and try to get her into a routine as this will give her something to focus on which will keep her brain active. As for caring for her at home i think that would be the best thing as it will be a familiar life style for her. You need to keep her brain active with everyday tasks and chores E.G shopping reading walking and try to get her to take up a hobby. My Nana had good and bad days but no matter what you must keep yourself calm if she is having a bad day. If you get angry with her she will get wound up which will make her more confused. It will be hard for you and your family at 1st but it will get easier over time. If you need anymore advice or a shoulder please don't hesitate to mail me. [e-mail].

Answer 7

I'm sorry you've had this devastating news- your sister is VERY young to have that.

Your sister CAN be looked after in her own home. Contact The Alzheimers Society, and CROSSROADS, Caring for Carers, for help/advice

Answer 8

36 that's young bless you all ?its the long long goodbye and she will deteriorate you need to seek advice from your doctor and she will need 24hr care when the time comes,its so sad in elderly my mum has dementia and although she is still at home with us its getting difficult and you really don't have a life but she has had a great life I really feel for you as your sister is so young and all her life would be in front of her I am so sorry and hope that you all have plenty of support you take care and take the good days and cherish them and the bad days hang in there bless

Answer 9

you will possibly desire to tell your dad suitable away. This guy is a pervert who's grooming your sister. If he's in his 30s and a millionaire and actor, you will possibly desire to ask your self why he's not with somebody in her 20s or 30s. the explanation is, they possibly be conscious of he's a creep and don't have something to do with him so he is going after naive youthful girls who're straightforward to get into mattress

Answer 10

that is so sad.what an awful thing to happen to someone so young.i can't answer your question but i wish you and your family the best of luck for the future xx