With the Baby Boomer generation leaping into its older years, dementia is reaching epidemic proportions and unfortunately, depression often occurs with dementia. Understanding this, or that each may stand alone, is an important aspect when grappling with these illnesses.

Depression in a person with dementia can be challenging to diagnose because the symptoms of each disorder are so similar and the diseases often occur simultaneously. However, an individual with dementia may also have difficulty communicating their low mood or feelings of anxiety, causing them to sometimes be wrongly diagnosed with depression.

For heightened clarity, there are some key differences to keep in mind.

• Depression tends to develop much more quickly than dementia (over weeks or a few months).

• Problems with speech, reasoning and orientation to time and space are unusual in depression, but are common in dementia.

• A person with depression may occasionally complain of an inability to remember things, but will remember when prompted, whereas a person with dementia (particularly Alzheimer’s disease) will be forgetful and will often try to cover aup memory loss.

• The root cause of impairments in reasoning and memory for depressive individuals is frequently due to poor concentration, which generally resolves when the depression lifts. This is not the case with dementia

• Apathy, or lacking motivation to do things, can be a symptom of both depression and dementia. However, the person is likely to show other symptoms of depression (such as being tearful) if depression is the cause.

According to the Alzheimer’s Association, up to 40 percent of people with Alzheimer’s disease also have depression, but experts have yet to uncover the reasons why depression and dementia occur together.

Wendy Annis is the founder of Helping Hands Elder Enrichment Services, where she offers services to individuals with dementia and their caregivers. She utilizes one-on-one techniques which embrace the individual’s personal history, incorporating the arts, which also touch upon the five senses. Connect at 520-647-6947,
[email protected] or HelpingHandsEES.com.