1. Jonitha Alston Psychology September 13, 2012 1
The mind of a dementia patient
My interest in dementia encouraged me to research this topic for my paper, this behavior
pattern has occurred in people for many years. There are many different reasons dementia can
occur, the stereo type is believed to only affect elderly people. Dementia has Dementia,
(pronounced dĭ-měn'shə) is derived from a Latin word meaning madness. The root word, “de”
meaning “without”, and ment meaning mind. Dementia is “A deterioration of natural mental
abilities, such as memory, concentration, and judgment”.
Dementia is often characterized by emotional disturbance, and personality changes,
which can progress into worst cases, the irreversible disease, consists of two types. The first
commonly known as, Alzheimer’s, named after Alois Alzheimer a German doctor who
discovered, and studied the effects of the brain caused by Alzheimer/Dementia. The second type
is called Multi- Infarct (damage to parts of the brain caused by blockage of blood vessels) which
can be caused by strokes.
Both forms of Dementia can develop over time, and present. At the present time, there
isn’t a cure for either type of Dementia; however, it can be treated. Dementia is caused by a
nervous system disease, starting from Alzheimer’s disease, the HIV infection that can cause
(Aids dementia complex another cause of dementia).

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Determining the homeostasis of the body, if illness or disease is present this can cause
dementia, because an illness or disease is present affecting the bodies regular functions and
abilities. Such diseases, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and Huntington’s can create the onset of
Dementia, due to nerve cell loss. Head injury, toxic reactions (drug/alcohol use), nutritional
deficiency (lack of vitamins), infections that affect brain, and illnesses other than in the brain
(Kidney, liver, and lung diseases) can cause dementia.
Dementia is most common in the elderly, but can happen to anyone at any age. A person
who has dementia will slowly become progressive; they will have different personalities and
behavior. They become forgetful, focus on past events that were memorable to them. Behavior
changes include anxiousness, aggression, and switch of moods. Symptoms also include
forgetfulness, confusion, depression and social withdrawal and more.
Even though Dementia doesn’t have a cure, depending on the cause of dementia it can be
reversed if related to other medical reasons, such as vitamin deficiency, treatment of infections,
treatment to relieve aids symptoms, changes in medicine, and surgery to remove a brain tumor,
those are just a few. Medicine can also help with symptoms such as mood swings, and
depression. Forms of dementia, such as Alzheimer’s cannot be treated, or reversed.
In my own experience, working as a C.N.A in a nursing home facility, the most
intriguing thing to me about working with dementia patients is identifying the beginning stages
of dementia, and understanding Dementia solely, how the disorder becomes progressive over
time, and trying to empathize with a patient who is distraught. Patient’s question of who they are,
family members are scarcely recognizable, and daily activities that were once a priority, become

3. Jonitha Alston Psychology September 13, 2012 3
a blur including simple activities, such as, brushing their teeth, combing their hair, and dressing
and eating breakfast, are no longer memorable.
I remember my first experience volunteering in a nursing home facility in Brooklyn,
before I knew what dementia was, a lady kept repeating a memory, and pacing back and forth,
she was a wonderer and did not remain still no matter how many times she was redirected. A
memory of what sounded like one she kept of her husband, whether he was still alive I didn’t
know, but now that I know more about dementia I reflected on this experience and this woman’s
memory. I thought to myself, maybe that was the last memory of her life or maybe it was the
most significant memory she held on too.
From experience I know that dementia patients often switch moods, become easily
agitated when ignored, asked too many things at once, become confused, or misunderstood.
Patients that become socially withdrawn encouraged to socialize with others, and partake in
certain types of activities. Despite the visual image of physical effects we see, I wonder how
dementia affects the mind of a dementia patient, and the process the brain goes through as the
disorder moves from stage to stage. The only thing left to wonder is where the mind has traveled.
Contemplating what each day will consist of for the dementia patient. I always wanted to
know more about Dementia, after seeing my patients pace back and forth, up and down the halls
of the nursing home where I work, I empathized with how the patient must feel and I could only
begin to imagine what loved ones felt like, after seeing this disease decimate their loved ones
mind and memory. I often feel bad for my patient’s families because it’s not easy to see or care
for a patient in this state.

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However there are ways in which a family can help their loved one adjust to their new
way of life by ,Working closely with a doctor, developing a care plan with a team of healthcare
professionals (the more support the better), making and sticking to a routine schedule for the
patients, (dementia patients work better with routine and consistency). Routine gives the patient
a sense of independence, and control over their present self in their present state.
When communicating with a dementia patient it is important to only discuss one topic at
a time because too many things may agitate, and cause the patient to become overwhelmed and
withdrawal. It is important to empathize with the patients, because it helps to have someone
listen to their concerns, even if what their talking about isn’t of interest. It’s more about the
sensitivity of their feelings and how passionate they are in what their talking about. It could even
be the last memory they had or something of significance to them.
There are ways to prevent dementia, by staying active physically (for stress management
and prevention of illnesses and diseases), staying mentally alert (by learning new hobbies
reading and solving puzzles to keep your mind busy and active), don’t smoking (prevents
diseases and cancers), eating healthy (keeps the body in a healthy state), and remaining at a
healthy weight to prevent other illnesses that can cause dementia. For example, diabetes, stroke,
high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and more.
As a result, many people are losing their mental abilities, to a disorder that progressively
eats up their minds. Families are losing their loved ones mentally, it must be frustrating to have
your love one physically with you, but not being able to communicate, because there is nothing
that you can relate too, their brain is no longer at the normal responsive state it was in. As the

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future of technology advances, I am hopeful for a cure for Dementia, one of the positive things
we can appreciate in technology is its development in improving studies and research.

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Works cited
American Psychological Association: dementia. (n.d.). The American Heritage®
Stedman's Medical Dictionary. Retrieved September 12, 2012, from Dictionary.com
website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/dementia
http://www.angelfire.com/ny2/dementia1/whatisde.html
http://www.webmd.com/alzheimers/guide/alzheimers-dementia