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Making the diagnosis can take time. The diagnosis can be made by a family doctor or a specialist. When making the diagnosis, the doctor may or may not refer you to other health-care professionals. These may include a psychologist, psychiatrist, neurologist, geriatrician, nurse, social worker or occupational therapist. They will look for problems with your memory, reasoning ability, language and judgment, and how these affect day to day function.
Over the years, many myths have evolved about what Alzheimer's disease is, who gets it and how it affects people who have it. These myths can add to the stigma attached to the disease and stand in the way of our ability to understand and help people with it. At the Alzheimer Society, we believe the sooner we dispel the myths, the better we'll be able to respond to the reality. Alzheimer's disease is a progressive, degenerative disease of the brain. It most often occurs in people over 65, but can affect adults at an earlier age.
To help you know what warning signs to look for the Alzheimer Society has created the following document of the 10 warning signs.
If you, or a family member, have recently been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, knowing what to expect as the disease progresses and learning what has helped others can greatly improve your quality of life. There are many people today who have been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease who are enjoying each day, as well as planning for their futures. No matter what stage of the disease you or a family member is experiencing, information is important to understanding and living with the disease.
Recent research has greatly improved our knowledge of Alzheimer's disease. Treatments for the disease are now available that may help to alleviate some of the symptoms. The tremendous advances in Alzheimer research have created optimism that more and better treatments are on the horizon. The information provided here is a brief overview of the treatments that are currently available.
Alzheimer's disease is the most common of a large group of disorders known as "dementia's". It is an irreversible disease of the brain in which the progressive degeneration of brain cells causes thinking ability and memory to deteriorate. Alzheimer's disease also affects behavior, mood, and emotions, and the ability to perform daily living activities.
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, often referred to as prion disease, is a rare, rapidly developing form of dementia caused by infectious proteins called prions. Prions are proteins that occur naturally in the brain and are normally harmless. However, prions cause disease when they take on a misshapen form, accumulate in the brain and kill off brain cells. Prion diseases affect both humans and animals.
Vascular Dementia (VaD), also called multi-infarct dementia, occurs when the cells in the brain are deprived of oxygen. A network of blood vessels called the vascular system supplies the brain with oxygen. If there is a blood flow interruption in the vascular system, or if it is diseased, blood is prevented from reaching some parts of the brain. As a result, cells in the affected region of the brain die, leading to the symptoms of dementia.
Lewy body dementia (LBD) is a form of dementia characterized by abnormal deposits of a protein called alpha-synuclein that form inside the brain's nerve cells. These deposits are called "Lewy bodies" after the scientist who first described them. The process that leads to the formation of Lewy bodies is unknown. Areas of the brain involved in thinking and movement are most affected in Lewy body dementia.
Unlike Alzheimer's disease, which generally affects most areas of the brain, frontotemporal dementia is an umbrella term for a group of disorders that primarily affect the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain - the areas generally associated with personality, behaviour, emotions, language, speech, abstract thinking and movement. In most cases of FTD, brain cells in these areas shrink or die. In other cases, the brain cells in these areas get larger, containing round, silver "Pick's bodies". The diagnosis is then Pick's disease or behavioural variant Frontotemporal Dementia (bvFTD), the most common frontotemporal disorder.
The term “Involuntary Separation” does not mean getting a legal separation or divorce. This means that the spouses are considered single only for the purpose of calculating their OAS and GIS benefits.
“Involuntary Separation” refers to a situation in which senior couples must live apart due to circumstances beyond their control, often because one or both need long-term care. This separation can place a financial strain on the couple, especially if their income is limited to public pensions like Old Age Security (OAS), Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS), and Canada Pension Plan (CPP).
Couples can apply for “Involuntary Separation” status under the Old Age Security Act to alleviate this. This allows each spouse to be treated as single for OAS and GIS calculations, potentially increasing their benefits. This status is granted when the separation is involuntary, such as when one or both spouses must move to a long-term care facility.
For more details, you can contact Service Canada or visit Your Complete Guide to Canada's Old Age Security Program.
To qualify for “Involuntary Separation” status under the Old Age Security (OAS) Act in Canada, the following criteria must be met:
Physical Separation - You and your spouse must be living apart, no longer under the same roof.
Involuntary Nature - The separation must be due to circumstances beyond your control, such as health issues requiring one or both spouses to move to a long-term care facility.
Age Requirement - At least one spouse must be 65 years or older and receiving OAS.
Marital Status - You must be legally married or in a common-law partnership.
If these conditions are met, you can apply to have each spouse treated as single to calculate OAS and GIS benefits, potentially increasing the financial support you receive.
To apply for “Involuntary Separation” status in Canada, follow these steps:
Fill out the form with accurate information about your situation. Ensure you provide all required details to demonstrate that the separation is involuntary due to circumstances beyond your control.
You can submit the completed forms to Service Canada by mail, phone, in person, or online.
For further guidance, visit Service Canada or speak with a representative at 1-800-277-9914.
This book is about life changes. It is meant to help you prepare for possible changes, and to connect you with services in your community. It has suggestions and information about resources to help you. It is based on what people receiving palliative care, their families, and health care providers have told us.
A guide to creating inclusive services for LGBTQ2S+ for older adults.
This toolkit is an interactive resource with print and online components. It will help you to learn about equity, diversity and inclusion and how to apply these concepts to your work in LTC.
A guide for employers. Building a resilient and sustainable workforce. Purpose of this guide: Build awareness and understanding of caregiving in the workplace. Guide workplaces on how to develop policies and practices that are supportive to care partners and benefit the workplace. Support managers in workplaces to understand, support, accommodate and demonstrate a commitment to working care partners. Empower working care partners and enhance access to supports that address their unique challenges.
This toolkit was designed to help you manage the competing needs of work and caregiving while taking care of your own health and happiness at the same time. Caregiving needs change over time - you may need to re-assess and problem-solve a few times to better manage work, caregiving and your own needs. You can revisit the sections of this toolkit as your needs continue to evolve. This toolkit provides practical tools and tips to help you find solutions that could work for you and your employer. You will learn about ideas to help you manage caregiving, options to explore greater flexibility and support at work, and tips for talking with your employer about solutions. Using this toolkit will help you understand the importance of taking care of yourself and your own mental health, in order to find a better balance in juggling the demands of being a working care partner.
How to use sporting heritage in memories and reminiscence activities. This handbook has been created to give you further insight into the application of sporting heritage programmes and provide a reference for your use in the future. It will help address issues such as training and the conduct of groups, as well as provide helpful hints as to how resources can be found and used.
Being diagnosed under the age of 65 presents unique challenges and there are many topics to consider, including, finances, children, employment, and health wishes. Living with dementia can cause big changes in individuals and families future plans as many need to consider how life needs and wishes may change as a person's dementia progresses. Since there is no cure or treatment and dementia is a progressive disease that can affect reasoning and communication it is important to plan for your future and ensure that others know how they can assist you with putting those plan into action, when needed.
Being diagnosed under the age of 65 presents unique challenges and there are many topics to consider, including, finances, children, employment, and health wishes. Living with dementia can cause big changes in individuals and families future plans as many need to consider how life needs and wishes may change as a person's dementia progresses. Your caregiving role is dependent on the needs of the person with dementia and your unique situation.
Young Onset Dementia is the term used to describe people under the age of 65 years who have been diagnosed with a type of dementia. People under the age of 65 years are often still working, many are raising dependent children, and some are also caring for an elderly relative. People with Young Onset Dementia have numerous decisions to make and a range of service options to consider as their dementia progresses. They frequently report not knowing what services are available or how to access those services. This resource guide is one of several documents to give information and support to Young Onset families as they journey through the process of gaining supports and services that they need as they live with dementia.
Care Partners, these next scenarios are not here to scare you, but we want to make you aware of things that may happen. It is important to know that these things do not happen to everyone, but knowing it can, will better prepare you in the case these situations arise. Within each of the situations below, there can be many individual experiences, they can range mild to extreme. Remind yourself that your family member has dementia, and this is the cause of these situations.
Outil d'écriture pour soutenir les aidants à se retrouver eux-mêmes, après s'être occupés d'un conjoint vivant avec un trouble neurocognitif. Apprendre à se retrouver peut se révéler nécessaire au processus de deuil; il permet à une personne de passer à une autre étape tout en honorant son passé.
Journey through the diagnosis of dementia.
The caregiving role does not end with the move; however, it evolves and is different in some respects. It can be daunting and difficult at first - what do I do now? Where do I fit in? You are now a "partner in care" with the staff. Your role is to inform, advise, recommend and encourage best quality care for your family member/relative/ friend.
Person Living with Dementia Version
For people living in a care home setting.
Outline of what the requirements are for an Ambassador
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