Until I joined this wonderful group I never heard that much about staging. Why is it that important. After researching it my husband is stage 6 to 7. How does that effect his care. He is in a memory disorder ALF.
Due to the relentless progression of this disease , I sometimes feel like it just doesn't matter what meds my DH takes or what stage he is in. I just try to live each day. But early on , having the stages defined for me was somewhat helpful . It was the first time that I really had to face the totality of the disease. Like many others I've had the experience of watching friends and family members successfully battle potentially terminal types of cancer. But understanding the stages made me really understand and see that there is at this time no winning against AD. My DH has never wanted to know much about AD and I consider that a blessing. We always talk about how lucky we are...that we have each other , and that there are still things we like to do. I wnat him to continue to feel that way as long as possible... I think at most the stages helped get me to a point of acceptance and with that a new sense of direction. I understood that I am in this for the long haul....
It helps to know what the stages are especially when the patient is in the earler stages. When something changes, you know if it is the disease or something totally different. You also know what the progression of the disease is.
When Ifirst got involved in learning about dementia I didn't realize that it was a fatal disease. Or how someone died from it. Or what was appropriate to work on for my husband's other medical issues, and what wasn't appropriate.
The stages tell you when you are going to need a wheel chair or diapers or some kind of home help or to start looking at nursing homes. If your husband really is in stages 6 to 7, and you haven't called Hospice in, you ought to. The choices you make for medications and care are different at different stages of the disease.
You asked how knowing the stages would affect his care, and that is one of the answers. At stage 6 to 7 you are close to the end of the journey. At stage 2 or 3 life is pretty close to normal and most of our loved ones have not yet been diagnosed. Medications change depending on the stage. Where the patient lives and who takes care of them also changes.
Thank you for all your insight. I am working with Hospice and as a medical professional they are letting me make most decisions. It is amazing to me how little I knew about AD before I began my journey. Bill stages at between 6 and 7-but sometimes bounces and recognizes me.