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Robert Mouldman's Theory Of Dementia

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Introduction Dementia is defined in Oxford Dictionaries as, “ a chronic or persistent disorder of the mental processes caused by brain disease or injury and marked by memory disorders, personality changes, and impaired reasoning.” However, while many believe it to be a disease itself, it is actually a group of symptoms caused by other conditions one might develop. The most common causes of dementia are degenerative neurological disorders, such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, vascular disorders, traumatic brain injuries, infections of the central nervous system, long-time alcohol or drug use, and certain types of hydrocephalus (webmd.com). The reason I chose this topic is because according to Robert S. Feldman’s Development Across …show more content…

While the person with the disease is slowly losing themselves and their independence, their family has to deal with the burden of caring for their deteriorating family member, which can be both physically and emotionally draining. The hardships of taking care of a loved one with a disease like Alzheimer’s is the reason why patients are said to make up about two-thirds of those in nursing homes (Prigerson, 2003, as cited in Feldman, 2014). It is important for family members of the afflicted to realize there is help available for those having to deal firsthand with slowly losing their loved one. The Alzheimer’s Association, for example, is there to provide caregivers and family members support and information (http://www.alz.org). While dementia is something everybody fears of possibly developing later in life, it is reassuring to know that scientists are working hard to find new treatments for these diseases, and possibly a cure. As someone who is working towards a career to help elderly patients, I hope I will be learning more on this subject, so that I may effectively help patients diagnosed with diseases like Alzheimer’s, and their

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