·The seven stages of Alzheimer’s disease are characterized by increasingly severe symptoms, including memory loss, confusion, and difficulty with activities of daily living.
·As the disease progresses, people with Alzheimer’s may experience delusions, hallucinations, and difficulty communicating. Ultimately, they may become completely reliant on others for their care (DeNoon, 2009).
1. Early stage/ Normal Outward Behavior: Mild memory loss and other changes in thinking abilities are noticeable. Characterized by mild memory loss and difficulty with learning new information.
2. Middle stage/Mild Changes: Memory loss and other cognitive changes become more pronounced, and begin to interfere with activities of daily living. Characterized by more significant memory loss, confusion, and difficulty with daily activities.
3. Mild Decline: Severe memory loss and cognitive decline make it difficult to communicate and perform basic activities of daily living. Characterized by severe memory loss, complete loss of communication abilities, and difficulty with basic motor skills.
4. Moderate Decline: Complete dependence on caregivers for all activities of daily living.
5. Moderately Severe Decline: No symptoms are apparent, but changes in brain structure and function can be detected.
