Worried About Your Parent’s Memory? 5 Early Warning Signs To Watch Out For
Written by Louise Hallinan founder of the Smart Brain Health Centre, International Award-winning Author of “Smart Brain, Healthy Brain”, and a Natural Medicine Practitioner.
Are you worried about your parent’s memory? If so, then you need to know about some of the warning signs to look out for so that you can help them.
This is a topic that no-one really likes to talk about, but it is important to address this now, just in case it ever happens in the future. Then you will know what to watch out for.
1. Repeating themselves or asking the same information over and over or telling you the same story you heard a few times already that day.
Have you ever noticed … your parent asks you a question and then you answer it. Then not long after that, they repeat the same question to you. You answer again. Then maybe some time later, they may ask you the same question? This is a definite warning sign.
2. Forgetting where they put things, losing items or putting items in the wrong place.
We have all put things in the wrong place occasionally, due to being rushed or stressed at that time which is quite common.
But when you notice your parent keeps losing things and you spend ages looking for their glasses or keys etc, and also if you do find the missing item in an unusual place for example, their glasses or keys in the fridge or pantry, then that is a warning sign.
3. Having trouble remembering family or friend’s name that they used to know really well or forgetting important dates
If you notice that your parent has forgotten a family or friend’s name and it happens more often than before, or if they have forgotten an important date, like their birthday or a date that you know is important to them, then that is something to watch out for.
Of course, we can all forget a person’s name briefly, but it will come back to us not long after and it does not happen all the time – that is the difference.
4. Stopping in the middle of a conversation and having no idea how to continue
This is another important one to watch out for. You can help them out by picking up where they left off, words or topic, then hopefully they can remember where they were up to and continue.
There is no need to make a fuss over it and just make a mental note for yourself to keep a watch over this for future reference.
5. Difficulty concentrating and taking longer to do things than before.
You may notice that tasks around the house which were no problem for your parent to do previously, they are now much slower at doing and completing due to their difficulty concentrating. There is no need to bring it to their attention, just make a mental note for yourself to keep an eye on it.
What you can do
The important thing to do if you do notice that your parent is getting more forgetful, or repeating themselves too many times, is that you keep it low key and do not make a fuss about it. If you do, that will only serve to make your parent more worried about themself and that is not going to help the situation. They may go into denial and say ‘there’s nothing wrong with my memory!” and you won’t get very far if that happens. The subject of their memory is a probably already a constant worry to them. Obviously, nobody wants to be told that they are having memory problems, especially by their children.
Talking to your parents
It is sometimes very hard to talk to your parent about their memory. It can make them feel or think, that they may be getting Alzheimer’s disease or dementia, when it may simply be a memory problem.
There is always a reason why
The important thing is to let your parent know that everyone gets forgetful from time to time. Explain to your parent that there is a reason why they are getting forgetful and the solution may be a simple one.
Reassure your parent that it is very important for them to have an awareness if they are getting forgetful, because then you can then investigate what is causing their memory problems.
Causes of memory problems
There are many causes for having memory problems and Stress is one of the major causes of memory problems. Your parent could be experiencing their memory problems due to the amount of mental and emotional stress that they have been through over the last few years, for example.
It is important to note that the sooner you recognise or are aware of any of these warning signs occurring in your parent, the sooner you can investigate and identify the reason why it is happening. Memory problems never occur out of the blue.
If your parent’s memory problems are ignored over a period of time and nothing is done about them, their memory will get worse and may lead to early cognitive decline.
So, once you notice any of these 5 warning signs, it is important to act by investigating and identifying the cause.
The good news is that once the cause of your parent’s memory problem is identified, then steps can be taken to treat the cause and improve your parent’s memory.Thank you again to Louise Hallinan for guest writing this important piece. Louise is the Founder of the Smart Brain Health Centre, International Award-winning Author of “Smart Brain, Healthy Brain”, and a Natural Medicine Practitioner.
She specialises in prevention and treatment of memory problems in order to reduce the risk of dementia and improve brain health.
www.smartbrainhealthcentre.com.au
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