TLDR: This list does not automatically mean someone has dementia—other causes may include drugs, stress, mental illness, or other medical conditions. Seek medical help before jumping to conclusions.
- Apathy: nothing is interesting.
- Affective dysregulation: sad, anxious, crabby.
- Lack of impulse control: frustrated, angry, irrationally stubborn, obsessive.
- Social inappropriateness: shockingly uninhibited or rude in words, deeds.
- Abnormal perceptions or thoughts: suspicious, hearing or seeing things that aren’t there.
I wish I’d had this article 10 years ago. 20/20 hindsight, my partner in her early 50s went through years of prodromal (beginning signs of) Alzheimer’s before receiving a diagnosis at age 61. The list is scary-accurate.
Just some anecdotal data, it can definitely start before 50. My brother was in his late 40s when he started showing changes (not necessarily symptoms). He was 48 when he quit working (I think he was actually fired). My sister is older, but appears to be in the early stages (not remembering things from earlier in the same conversation, needs help making decisions). I’m 50 and starting to have memory lapses.
Definitely don’t wait until 50 to look for symptoms.