🧠 10 Early Signs of Dementia You Shouldn’t Ignore
Occasionally forgetting a name or misplacing your keys is normal aging. Dementia is different: the changes become persistent and begin interfering with everyday life. (CDC)
1. Forgetting recently learned information
Repeatedly forgetting conversations, appointments or information you were just given can be concerning.
2. Repeating questions or stories
Someone may ask the same question several times because they don’t remember having asked it. (National Institute on Aging)
3. Trouble managing familiar tasks
Difficulty cooking a familiar meal, using a usual appliance, managing finances or completing routine activities can be a warning sign.
4. Problems planning or solving problems
Increasing difficulty following a familiar recipe, paying bills or organizing ordinary activities may indicate cognitive decline.
5. Getting confused about time or place
Frequently losing track of dates, seasons or locations—or getting lost in a familiar area—is more concerning than ordinary forgetfulness. (National Institute on Aging)
6. Difficulty finding or using words
Someone may increasingly struggle to participate in conversations, find familiar words or use unusual words for familiar objects. (CDC)
7. Misplacing things in unusual places
Everyone loses things occasionally. A concern is when someone repeatedly puts objects in strange locations and cannot retrace their steps to find them.
8. Poorer judgment
New problems with money, safety, grooming or decision-making can sometimes accompany dementia. (National Institute on Aging)
9. Withdrawal or changes in personality
A noticeable loss of interest in previously enjoyed activities, increased anxiety, irritability or other personality changes can occur. (National Institute on Aging)
10. Difficulty recognizing or interpreting what you see
Some forms of dementia can affect visual processing, spatial relationships and the ability to recognize familiar objects—even when eyesight itself is adequate. (CDC)
