What to do if an elderly person loses memory and gets confused

The nature of amnesia in old age

In older years, a person’s brain functionality decreases, the process of cellular renewal slows down, and biochemical processes deteriorate. The body is aging.

Although memory loss in older people is a common problem, it is not a necessary consequence of aging. In a healthy elderly person, memory functions worse, but is generally normal, with minor defects. He analyzes and assimilates new information more slowly, remembers large amounts of data worse, and may forget the name of someone he knows.

Serious memory impairment is associated with the influence of external causes: head injuries, circulatory disorders, mental disorders, long-term use of drugs and others.

Memory deteriorates gradually. First, a person forgets the events of the present, then - details and details. Then the memory of the events of youth returns. Then the person forgets personal information and stops recognizing people.

Causes

Age-related changes are the background for the development of memory problems. They cause disruptions in brain function. If a person does not train his mind, his memory will weaken over the years.

The causes of memory loss are varied. The main ones include the following:

• Lack of oxygen (hypoxia), due to which the brain suffers and remembers new information worse • Hypertension - high blood pressure • Cardiovascular diseases, which lead to impaired cerebral blood flow • Traumatic brain injuries • Severe chronic illnesses: varicose veins, diabetes diabetes, Alzheimer's disease, central nervous system problems • Intoxication of the body

The causes of memory impairment are also classified into groups. Thus, there are physiological and psychological causes of amnesia.

Physiological reasons are associated with disturbances in the functioning of the hippocampus and cerebral circulation, a decrease in the amount of proteins and hormones. These reasons include hypertension, ischemia, cerebral hypoxia, vascular aneurysm, oncology, varicose veins, intoxication of the body, taking medications and others.

Psychological ones include stress, frequent conflicts, psychotrauma, increased emotional and mental stress, loneliness, monotonous lifestyle, depression, chronic fatigue and others.

Diseases that cause memory impairment

The most common cause is traumatic brain injury. The second main reason is associated with poor blood circulation in the brain, which occurs with vascular atherosclerosis.

Having a stroke interferes with healthy blood flow to the affected area, leading to memory problems.

Vascular lesions in diabetes mellitus lead to various abnormalities, including in the functioning of the brain.

Encephalitis and meningitis affect all brain activity. If a person is diagnosed with these viral diseases, timely therapy must be started.

Thyroid disease can impair the memory of an older person. Such a patient experiences depression, irritability, weight gain, and muscle swelling. To solve the problem, normalize the level of iodine in the body with the help of medications and food.

Alzheimer's disease causes memory loss and decreased intellectual abilities. Most often it occurs in people aged 65-80 years. Unfortunately, modern medicine is not able to cure this disease, but it is possible to prolong the patient’s life and improve its quality with the help of palliative therapy. Therapy must be started as early as possible, otherwise amnesia will lead to serious consequences.

Memory impairment in the elderly: what to look out for

If a person periodically forgets some things, calls people by other people’s names, there is nothing wrong with that. Such rare forgetfulness and temporary memory lapses are typical for older people and do not harm his life.

You need to be wary when memory lapses in an elderly person occur frequently, progress and are accompanied by a deterioration in mental abilities: the ability to think logically, speak well, etc. This is how senile dementia can develop.

The person may have difficulty with everyday activities. If he pronounces words incorrectly, gets lost in space, behaves inappropriately in society, you need to take the person to a doctor.

Types of memory disorders

Amnesia is divided into types depending on the nature of the loss of information. There are the following types of memory loss:

• Partial or complete. With partial, a person cannot remember some events of his life; with complete, memories disappear entirely. • Short term or long term. In short-term, a person does not remember new information that he received in the last hours or days; in long-term, he forgets events from the long past - from several months to several years ago. • Temporary or permanent. Temporary is associated with temporary forgetfulness, then the memory is restored (for example, a person forgets the name of a friend, and after a while remembers). Permanent amnesia is the loss of information that a person can no longer remember. • Anterograde (a person forgets the past, but remembers the present well) or retrograde (on the contrary: a person remembers the present poorly, but remembers the past well). • Gradual or sudden. Gradual memory loss occurs over time; memory weakens slowly. It is difficult to diagnose and predict. In case of sudden memory loss, a person immediately forgets important data: first and last names, address, loved ones. A lost pensioner with sudden amnesia cannot remember where his house is or clearly explain its location. • Sharp. Happens suddenly and has a strong impact. With it, a person cannot normally do even simple everyday activities; he forgets what he was going to do today. This amnesia is caused by brain pathologies or emotional problems. If you do not pay proper attention to the disease, it will begin to progress. • Visual - affects visual perception, a person does not recognize loved ones, familiar places. • Reversible (can be cured) and irreversible (cannot be cured). • Global - a person does not remember the past and does not remember new events.

There are also other types of memory loss:

• Korsakovskaya. Develops due to alcohol abuse. People forget events during periods of severe intoxication or hangover. • Senile. Develops over the years. People with this disorder increasingly remember events from past years. • Post-stroke. An attack that has been suffered impairs the functioning of a person’s senses and thinking. • Semantic. A common senile amnesia, in which memories of the outside world are lost. In a mild form a person forgets the names of objects, in a moderate form he does not remember what different objects are for, in a severe form both disorders are combined. • Procedural. A person loses everyday skills. Forgets how to brush teeth, wear clothes, and use cutlery. He needs constant help. • Professional. Associated with a person's work. He forgets how to properly perform his professional duties.

Amnesia in old age, together with disorders of thinking and attention, leads to senile dementia. The disease is progressing. It all starts with forgetfulness of individual moments and events. For example, a person forgets whether he closed the door or took his medicine. Then the events of the past are forgotten, and then the person stops recognizing his acquaintances.

Tips for relatives of people with dementia

Caring for a loved one who suffers from dementia is hard work. Psychological burnout inevitably occurs. Watching your ward lose his mind every day has a negative impact on the condition of loved ones.

We recommend following expert advice when caring for an elderly person with dementia:

1. Try to accept the disease and its manifestations in behavior. Remember that the patient’s negative statements about you, accusations of theft and deception are not his true thoughts and feelings, but symptoms of the disease.
2. Create a warm emotional environment for the ward. You need him to be able to trust you. Then the seriously ill person will not experience anxiety and despair.
3. Maintain a clear daily routine. A patient with dementia should develop a sleep-wake pattern to avoid confusion.
4. Control your emotions, do not scream, no matter what actions the patient performs. Such reactions can often provoke him to run away from home.
5. Do not demand a quick answer to a question from a sick person. He forgets the meaning of words and thinking occurs at a slow pace.
6. Try to talk with the patient on different topics: this will help him maintain his speech. An elderly person remembers events of the past clearly; focus on this. In this way, you solve two problems: you support the patient in trying to remember information and evoke pleasant feelings in him. The elderly enjoy reminiscing about their childhood and youth.
7. If you feel like you are on the verge of a breakdown, give yourself a social break: ask for help from loved ones, hire a nurse, find a good boarding house for an elderly person.

A patient with dementia is often placed in a boarding house for the elderly when it is not possible to care for him at home.

Symptoms

Amnesia is accompanied by the following symptoms:

• Confusion. Restless thoughts cause short-term memory loss. • Speech problems – associated with brain disorders. May occur due to dementia or head injuries. The person speaks indistinctly, changes words, does not pronounce the ending, and loses the logic of the conversation. • Headaches that provoke infections and traumatic brain injuries. • Trouble concentrating – caused by an infection or brain tumor. Inattention interferes with a person's ability to perform daily activities. • Impaired coordination and orientation in space. These symptoms may indicate the onset of Alzheimer's disease. • Tremor – develops along with memory loss. With sudden forgetfulness and panic, a person experiences trembling in the body. • Feeling tired. It can develop due to exercise, thyroid problems, brain tumors, or a virus. • Dizziness – indicates a lack of coordination. • Bad mood, lack of interest in everyday activities and events.

Symptoms occur in different combinations. If a person has already developed senile dementia, then additional disturbances in movement and orientation in space occur.

Also, amnesia in the elderly is characterized by additional signs that manifest themselves in psychology, behavior, and human health:

• Changes in handwriting • Violation of given promises, forgetfulness about upcoming events • Absent-mindedness in terms of daily affairs. A person may forget about simple actions: close the door, turn off the iron, etc. • Negligent hygiene: a person stops taking care of himself, forgets about the rules of cleanliness, does not maintain order at home. • The person becomes slow and cannot perform normal activities well. • Irritability, aggressiveness, demandingness, capriciousness, vulnerability, and touchiness arise. • The patient calls relatives by other people's names.

Memory loss is itself a symptom of other illnesses, often mental or neurological disorders.

Diagnostics

A neurologist diagnoses and treats the problem. The person may also be sent to a neurosurgeon, psychotherapist and other specialists.

Diagnosis begins with a detailed interview with the patient. Experts find out the symptoms and nature of amnesia and its cause. They use information about a person’s health and illnesses to find the root cause. This information will help restore healthy brain activity.

During the interview, the specialist finds out the following points: • When memory impairment began • What is the nature of the problem: memory is lost abruptly or gradually • What is difficult to remember • Are there any problems with everyday activities • What is the patient’s illness and what medications is he taking?

The patient undergoes laboratory tests to determine nervous system disorders that affect memory. For research we use:

• Biochemical blood test • Cerebrospinal fluid analysis • Electroencephalogram • Toxicological tests • Brain examination • Blood vessel analysis • DSM – duplex scanning of cerebral vessels • CT – computed tomography of the brain • Doppler ultrasound of cerebral vessels

It is necessary to carefully study the patient's situation and observe him for some time in order to correctly identify the problem and prescribe the correct treatment.

Memory Tests

To determine how developed mental activity is, neurologists use memory tests for older people.

To conduct the test you need: a watch, paper and a pen. Within 60 seconds you need to remember the following words: haystack, sidewalk, castle, century, strip, film, carriage, aroma, landscape, Carpathians, moon, Himalayas, actor, stillness, book, calendar, flower, man, hill, woman, taxi , abstraction, vessel, helicopter, gift.

When time is up, write down the words you remember on a piece of paper:

• Less than 6 – specialist consultation and a program for training memory functions are required;
• 7-12 - attention and concentration suffer;
• 13-17 - good memory ability;
• 18-22 - the result is above average, phone numbers, card PIN codes and other important information are easy to remember;
• More than 22 - a high result, the ability to quickly remember large amounts of information, analyze and systematize it in your head.

Do several of these tests to determine the level of neuron activity in your brain.

Memory tests

These memory exercises can be done independently at home to test your memory.

Test No. 1

The “Shopping List” test is suitable for testing short-term memory. Write down any 10-item shopping list on a piece of paper. Let the elderly person study it for 40 seconds and remember it. Then check how many items from the list the person remembers: you can ask orally, or write down on paper. Missing an item or incorrectly named word from the list is counted as an error. If there are no errors, then everything is fine with the memory. If a person has up to 4 errors, then he has normal memory for old age. If there are 5 or more errors, the brain needs help.

Test No. 2

Ask the subject to draw a clock face with a specific time. This test not only tests the memory of an elderly person, but also the soundness of his thinking. If the dial is depicted evenly, the numbers are located correctly and do not stand out from the general row, the hands are also even and correctly indicate the given time - the person is healthy, his memory is in order. When dementia begins, the drawing will be crooked, the numbers will be of different sizes, in the wrong order, the arrows will be uneven, and show the wrong time. Severe deviations from the normal pattern may indicate the onset of dementia. This simple test can be done regularly to check on an older person. If severe defects are detected in the drawing, the person should be taken to a doctor for diagnosis.

Test No. 3

This test tests long-term memory. You need to write down several contacts of your loved ones on a separate sheet - up to 5-10 numbers. Try to learn this list, and then check the quality of memorization after 1-3 days. If a person can correctly recall most of his contact list, he is doing well with long-term memory. If not, there is something to work on.

Caring for a patient with dementia in a boarding house

Boarding houses are divided into two types: public and private. People are admitted to public institutions based on referrals from social service centers. No special voucher is required for a private boarding house. The establishments provide similar services. Differences may relate to the quality and cost of service.

The advantages of a private boarding house are:

• small number of residents;
• modern rehabilitation equipment and technical equipment;
• personal care for seriously ill patients.

At home, care falls on the shoulders of one family member; in a boarding house, care services are provided by different employees. The staff not only have experience in caring for older people with chronic diseases, but also undergo regular training. A patient with dementia receives:

• medical care for illness;
• psychological assistance;
• hygiene care;
• fractional dietary meals.

Patients do not feel lonely. The elderly live surrounded by peers; leisure programs and hobby classes are organized for them.

You may also be interested in the article: How to choose a private facility for the elderly

Treatment

A specialist will study the situation and draw up a treatment course. The sooner the diagnosis is made, the sooner therapy can begin. With reversible memory loss, this is especially necessary: ​​it is easier to restore memory and prevent dementia.

Therapy uses medications, physiotherapy, psychological methods, dietary changes, and folk remedies.

Treat the root cause of amnesia. This can be acute or chronic circulatory failure in the brain, which occurs due to cardiovascular diseases. If a person has atherosclerosis of the head arteries, arterial hypertension, or heart disease, they need to be treated.

Medicines

For atherosclerosis of the main arteries, antiplatelet agents are prescribed, and for high cholesterol, statins are prescribed. If the cause is head injury, the person is prescribed medications to improve metabolism: absorbable, nootropic, diuretic. If memory loss occurs due to dementia, neurotropics are used. It is necessary to combat harmful factors: physical inactivity, smoking, obesity, diabetes mellitus - they can lead to cerebral ischemia.

• Antiplatelet agents and vasodilators improve cerebral blood flow and tissue blood supply. • Neuroprotectors and antioxidants harmonize metabolism in neurons, making a person more resistant to hypoxia and adverse effects. Combined neuroprotectors are drugs with multiple effects to solve several problems at once. • Memantines help with Alzheimer's disease. • Nootropic drugs stimulate cognitive abilities, improve metabolism in cerebral tissues. They help fight aging, mental disorders, and improve memory. • Anticholinesterase drugs inhibit the development of dementia in old age. • Antioxidants. They block the action of free radicals, heal and renew tissues, and make cells resistant to hypoxia. • Adaptogens - herbal remedies and multivitamin complexes. Help the body fight age-related changes.

ethnoscience

Useful herbs for general strengthening will have a good effect on the health of the entire body and improve memory. They are recommended to be used as additional means to primary drug therapy.

Several recipes:

• Pour eleutherococcus roots (40 g) with water (0.5 l), heat and boil for 10 minutes. The decoction is taken 150 ml four times a day. • Pour 1 liter of hot water over walnut leaves (50 g), cover with a towel and leave for several hours. Take 150 ml three times a day. • Pour thyme (1 tbsp) into a jar and add boiling water, leave for 15 minutes. Take one cup 3 times a day. This remedy improves memory and slows down the development of amnesia. • If memory loss is due to a head injury, you can use a walnut-based remedy. Chop the peeled walnuts into small pieces and add honey. Take one tablespoon three times a day for a month. • For atherosclerosis, which also affects memory, it is useful to take a thinning agent based on dill seeds. Place one tablespoon of seeds in a saucepan, add 0.5 liters of hot water, leave for half an hour. Take half a glass before meals 3 times a day.

The following folk remedies are useful:

• Drink pumpkin juice regularly, the daily norm is 100 ml • Drink a decoction of dried rowan bark • Eat 4 pieces of young pine buds • Drink clover tincture for 2 months

Nutrition for amnesia

It is important to change your diet. If a person is addicted to junk food, he needs to switch to a healthy diet. It is useful to include foods that strengthen memory: apple, banana, carrots, cottage cheese, sour cream, nuts, chocolate, potatoes, horseradish. Food should be rich in vitamins; you can take vitamin complexes.

Dietary recommendations:

• The basis of the diet should be plant foods and dairy products • You need to eat in small portions and regularly, follow a meal plan by the hour. • Food must be fresh and prepared from quality ingredients. • You need to avoid fatty, fried, smoked and spicy foods. Eliminate processed foods, fast food, and high-calorie foods.

Examples of healthy dishes that can be included in the menu: whole grain porridge with milk, buckwheat/rice as a side dish, light broth soup, lean meat, cottage cheese casserole, vegetable stew, fruit salad.

Additional treatment

Electrophoresis and massage are popular physiotherapy procedures. In psychological treatment, exercises are used to train the brain. Psychotherapy helps the patient to recall forgotten events. Hypnotic practices may be used.

Exercise therapy improves motor and brain activity, blood circulation, and endurance.

If the cause of memory loss is a hematoma or brain tumor, the person is prescribed neurosurgery.

The course of treatment is drawn up by the doctor after a thorough diagnosis. You can’t choose your own remedies and self-medicate. If you notice obvious symptoms of amnesia, you should immediately consult a doctor. Treatment is necessary: ​​if the problem is neglected, it can reduce a person’s quality of life and worsen his social ties with society. In old age, amnesia progresses without treatment.

Medicines to improve memory

To treat memory loss, the doctor prescribes antipsychotic drugs that actively affect the functioning of the brain. Groups of antipsychotic drugs suppress excessive emotional state, mental activity and other manifestations of psychosis, without disturbing the patient’s consciousness. In addition to antipsychotics, older people are prescribed antidepressants based on mianserin and fluoxetine. For insomnia, sleeping pills are indicated to help restore strength spent while awake.

The most effective medications for treating memory loss are:

• “Actovegin”, “Gliatilin”, “Piracetam” - drugs improve the interaction of the cerebral cortex and the nervous system, prevent the destruction of brain neurons;
• "Tripental" - improves blood circulation in the brain;
• “Glycine” – activates cognitive functions.

In case of relapse, the herbal drug "Tanakan" is prescribed on an ongoing basis.

Important! Medicines for the treatment of memory in old age have side effects, so patients with indications for drug therapy should be under the supervision of a doctor.

Home treatment and prevention

If a person does not have a serious condition, they can be treated at home in the comfort and peace of mind. The therapeutic course includes taking medications, performing useful exercises and medical recommendations.

To improve your health, you must comply with the following conditions:

• Sleep at least 8-9 hours a day. An additional 1-2 hour nap during the day is also recommended. • Maintain good communication with loved ones: relatives, friends, neighbors. • Avoid conflicts and stressful situations, create a calm, friendly atmosphere at home. • Stop smoking and drinking alcohol. • Eat harmoniously and nutritiously. • Walk outdoors every day. • Involve the elderly relative in family and household affairs.

Recommendations for people with memory loss

• Twice a year you need to undergo a medical examination to monitor the person’s condition. • Every year it is useful to go to a sanatorium or resort to improve the general condition and health of the nervous system. • Maintain a logical connection between the past, present and future. To avoid memory lapses, you need to talk to a person about his biography in order to maintain a healthy memory. • Keep a diary in which to record the events of the day. This will help to record facts and restore memories if they are lost. • Discuss different topics: a movie watched, a book read, events experienced. • Do drawing or music. • Walk outdoors every day. • Maintain mental work, learn new things.

Thanks to the active work of the brain, the connection between cells is strengthened, thanks to which a person maintains sanity and good thinking for a long time.

To maintain healthy memory, you need to lead an active lifestyle. Proper nutrition, walks in the fresh air, and suitable physical activity are necessary. Bad habits need to be abandoned.

To maintain strong memory for many years, older people need to monitor their overall health. Diseases affect the quality of memory. It is necessary to control sugar and cholesterol levels, and treat chronic diseases.

It is necessary to maintain brain health through intellectual activities: reading, learning new things, solving puzzles, being creative, developing in any area.

Tips from medical experts for preserving memory:

• Maintain healthy cholesterol levels. If left unchecked, memory problems may develop in old age. • Take a course of ginkgo biloba extract (40 mg) - this will improve memory. • Include foods with natural antioxidants in your diet - they will prevent the weakening of brain activity. • Contact a psychologist when you discover the first problems with memory.

Memory training in old age

To train your memory, it is important to be aware of the memory characteristics of older people. Pensioners have better developed logical, rather than figurative, memory, so information that a person actively thinks to remember, he assimilates and remembers better. Repeating new information many times will also help you remember something new. It is easier for a person to remember what makes sense to him.

To improve memory in an elderly person, it is useful to follow these recommendations:

• Be physically active. Suitable physical activity will support healthy memory. • Drawing with both hands. On a sheet of paper, try to simultaneously draw the same objects with both hands, for example, two squares, circles, triangles. Next, you can choose more complex shapes: flowers, trees, clouds. The hardest thing is to depict different objects at the same time. This exercise will train both hemispheres of the brain. • Write a summary of the text, as in your school years. You can use a short read text, radio or television news. Express the main meaning, retain more facts and precise details, maintain the style of the narrative. • Remember the last person you saw, his appearance in great detail. • Learn poetry by heart. • Perform usual actions differently. Brush your teeth with the other hand, go to the store a different way, etc. • Memorize lists. Lists can be anything: thematic and consisting of different words, everyday ones (for example, shopping in a store or a to-do list for the week). You can learn a foreign language by making lists to memorize. • Learn to play a musical instrument. • Activities to develop fine motor skills of the fingers: rotating small objects between the fingers, knitting, modeling and others. • Solve puzzles, crosswords and riddles. You can work with any information, learn foreign languages. • Take regular breaks from work for rest, for example, changing activities from mental to physical (walking, exercising, cleaning). • Keep a diary. Such an organizer will not only make the work of the brain easier, but will also help train your memory by recording notes. • Read more. This will train motor and visual memory and develop thinking. It is useful to retell what you read and analyze the work. • Train attention to detail. Remember down to the smallest detail what this or that object, person, place looks like. • Develop a positive outlook on life.

Each memory problem in old age is an individual case that requires professional study. Relatives of an elderly person need to remember the signs of amnesia in order to be able to recognize the onset of the disease in time. If you suspect a disease, you need to take the person to a specialist. Treatment is necessary in any case; self-medication is not allowed.

To strengthen and improve memory in old age, you need to follow useful recommendations, lead a healthy lifestyle, and maintain mental and physical activity. In this way, you can preserve a strong and good memory for many years.

How to prevent dementia

Preventive measures to prevent dementia can be divided into medicinal and nonspecific. In any case, be sure to pay attention to the person’s lifestyle: nutrition, physical and mental activity, and social involvement of the person. It is believed, for example, that people who lead an active social life are less likely to suffer from dementia. For older people today, there are many opportunities for self-realization: attending lectures, health seminars, special events, participating in various programs to learn new skills. This can also include cultural programs - exhibitions, theme evenings, museums, special trainings.

It is imperative to monitor your weight, blood pressure and cardiovascular health, as well as your sugar levels. Do not abuse alcohol, uncontrolled use of medications and traditional medicine. Fill your daily life with mental activity: for example, solving puzzles and crosswords, reading books, and doing handicrafts.

Regular physical activity can also help prevent the progression of cognitive impairment. Both group and individual lessons are possible. Physical fitness is not so important: the main thing is that an elderly person spends time in the fresh air more often and gives moderate stress to his body. Physical activity can slow down pre-existing cognitive impairment in its early stages. The good effect of physical activity is especially noticeable in neurodegenerative and vascular disorders.

If one of your relatives suffered from dementia and you are aware of the hereditary predisposition, be prepared to form the so-called “cognitive reserve” at an early age. Increase the body's resistance to stressful situations and focus on physical and mental development. Increase your awareness in this area, do not neglect physical education and regular examinations.

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