After Alzheimer’s disease, Lewy body dementia is the most common type of dementia. Lewy bodies are comprised of lumps of protein that can form in the brain and build up. At a certain point, they begin to affect the way your loved one thinks, moves, and behaves.
While Lewy Body Dementia doesn’t cause the same memory problems that Alzheimer’s disease causes, it can impact the quality of life of those who have it significantly. Symptoms will continue to get worse as they age, and getting 24-hour home care can help provide quality care and support.
Early-Stage Symptoms of Lewy Body Dementia
- Hallucinations: Almost 80% of individuals who have Lewy body dementia have hallucinations of some type, and it is often the first symptom that leads family members to seek a diagnosis.
- Movement Difficulties: the disease often starts with the person having problems moving certain parts of the body. Your loved one may struggle with having parts of his body freeze in place, tremors, a loss of coordination, and trouble swallowing.
- Sleep Issues: Lewy body dementia often interrupts REM sleep, causing a person to act out dreams, be violent while sleeping, or fall out of bed.
- Concentration Problems: Your loved one may not be able to stay focused on a conversation or a movie.
- Struggles Problem-Solving: Things such as judging distances, measuring out items, organizing areas, or multi-tasking may become difficult, and you might spot your loved one using some creative but not necessarily logical ways to get what she wants.
- Behavior and Mood Changes: Irritability, paranoia, and restlessness are often common.
Areas That Your Loved One Will Need Help With
One of the first areas patients need help with is managing household responsibilities, whether it be chores around the home or taking care of the bills and upkeep of the home. You might need to step in and help with making sure monthly bills are paid and the routine maintenance is taken care of.
Your loved one will also need help with transportation as driving will become too dangerous for him to do anymore. Taking away the keys can be tough, but it will protect both him and his community. Personal care needs such as grooming and meal prep might also need a 24-hour home care provider to step in and assist.
How 24-Hour Home Care Can Keep Your Senior Independent Longer
If your loved one is currently in the early stages of the disease, he might express a desire to stay in his own home as long as possible. His home provides comfort and familiarity and can help him navigate the many changes that occur as the condition worsens over time. But that said, his home is probably not safe for him to live in alone anymore.
One option that works great for many individuals is 24-hour home care. With 24-hour home care services, your loved one will always have someone in the home with him, but no one is sleeping the home (unlike live-in home care). A team of professionals will rotate shifts so that someone is always there and awake to help with whatever need he may have.
A 24-hour home care team is a great care option if you have concerns about night-time wandering or your loved one trying to drive himself places when he shouldn’t. It’s also a great option if there isn’t enough room in his home to accommodate someone moving in with him to assist with his care needs.
If you or an aging loved one are considering 24-Hour Home Care in UTC, CA, please contact the caring staff at Aaron Home Care. (619) 880-5522
A Trusted Home Care Agency Serving La Jolla, Pacific Beach, Point Loma, San Diego, UTC, La Mesa, Chula Vista, Coronado, Bonita, Eastlake, and the surrounding areas.
Sources:
In 1999, Aaron was named Residential Program Manager of a group home for disabled adults in Arlington, Virgina. Here, he built a reputation for being compassionate with his clients and efficient in company operations. In the years that followed, Washington DC’s human services field went through unprecedented reform when the city was fined $11 million for the previously unchecked abuse, neglect, and exploitation of the very population it was supposed to protect. In 2005, Aaron was selected by a watchdog company to co-create and implement a monitoring system to safeguard and advocate for the system’s most vulnerable residents. This system is still in use today.
Aaron is now using his unique gifts and profound experience in the human service field to provide San Diego County Seniors with dependable, compassionate caregivers through Aaron Home Care.
He currently serves on the board of the San Diego Regional Home Care Council and is an active member of the Senior Advocate Network of San Diego.
Aaron Home Care is a member of the American Board of Home Care and is accredited by the Better Business Bureau.
- Common Symptoms of Early Stage Lewy Body Dementia - January 9, 2025
- Providing Support for Depression in Bedridden Patients - December 23, 2024
- Six Tips to Make Meals Easier When Your Loved One Has Alzheimer’s Disease - December 6, 2024
