You would think at 17, a child should have a perfect sense of memory right? Well, this is something I find myself struggling with recently, I cannot seem to remember the things I want to say. This led me down the road of researching memory loss and eventually I came across the topic of Dementia.

So, what is dementia anyway? dementia is a general term for loss of memory, language, problem-solving and other thinking abilities that are severe enough to interfere with daily life. There are many forms of dementia, the most common is Alzheimer’s which accounts for 60-80% of cases. The second most common form of dementia according to the Alzheimer’s Association is Vascular Disease, “which occurs because of microscopic bleeding and blood vessel blockage in the brain.” Those who experience multiple forms of dementia would be referred to as having Mixed Dementia.

What are some common misconceptions about dementia? Usually people refer to Dementia as senility or having been caused by old age. However, this is not the case because Dementia can start as early as age 30. People also think that Alzheimer’s Disease is unrelated to Dementia. This is not the case as Alzheimer’s is a form of dementia, remember, dementia is an umbrella term that holds many other afflictions under it.

How does a person develop dementia? Dementia develops after damage to certain brain cells in the Hippocampus, the part of the brain that controls memory and recall. Interestingly, a brain injury that happened decades before can cause dementia but a person will not see the effects for a long time.

I hoped that this helped you learn a little bit more about what dementia is and how it can affect a person. It truly is a scary thing to witness and experience, so please remember to take good care of yourself and keep your brain healthy.