Is It Common For A Person Who Is Experiencing The Early Stages Of Alzheimer’s Disease To Begin Losing Their Ability to Verbally Communicate?
In order to answer this question, we must again remind ourselves that the stages and symptoms of Alzheimer’s are unique to the individual experiencing them. Different people with the disease will progress at different rates and experience different symptoms. While symptoms such as memory loss and feelings of frustration, fear, and uncertainty are relatively common, other symptoms are more variable.
While this is not a universal symptom of Alzheimer’s, individuals who do lose their ability to verbally communicate often do so during the middle to late stages of the disease. As Alzheimer’s progresses and the individual’s brain begins to deteriorate, certain bodily functions become impaired. One such bodily function may pertain to the individual’s ability to communicate with others. Early on, this symptom can be detected in an individual’s inability to complete a sentence or find a word that they are looking for. However, as time progresses, speech can deteriorate to the point that it is all together unrecognizable. A person may form complex sentences in which the words have no relative meaning, or they may lose the physical ability to speak overall.
In dementia, as in many neurological diseases, there is always the frightening possibility of miniature strokes. People who are diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease often experience miniature strokes. Conversely, there are also a number of people who first experience these strokes and then, consequently, develop dementia. In both of these scenarios, a stroke can be responsible for an individual’s loss of speech. In such a situation, speech therapists may be able to work with these individuals and help them regain or improve their ability to speak.
If your loved one experiences a loss of speech early in the course of the disease, you may need to consult your physician. If you are not comfortable with your doctor or the information he provides you with, seek a second opinion. You may also want to get in touch with a specialist. Since miniature strokes can be difficult to detect, even with the help of an MRI, it is important to seek out an experienced neurologist who will also take observable symptoms and family reports into consideration when formulating a diagnosis.
As always, for more information on Alzheimer’s, or any of your other Denver estate planning questions, click here to view our Wills and Trusts 101 seminar or call 303-758-0680 to get in touch with one of our Colorado elder law attorneys.
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