What is it, really?
Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia, accounting for 60–80% of cases. It is a progressive brain condition that gradually affects memory, language, reasoning and the ability to carry out everyday tasks. It most commonly affects people over 65, though early-onset Alzheimer's can occur earlier. There is currently no cure, but treatments can help manage symptoms and slow progression. For families and caregivers, the journey is as much about connection, dignity and presence as it is about medical care.
What you can do right now
- →Establish simple, consistent daily routines: predictability reduces anxiety and confusion
- →Use memory aids: labelled drawers and cupboards, photo albums with names, sticky notes in visible places
- →Speak slowly and clearly, using short sentences, and avoid arguing or correcting errors
- →Focus on what the person can still do and enjoy, rather than what they have lost
- →Prepare legal and financial arrangements early, while the person can still participate in decisions
- →Look after yourself too: caregiver burnout is serious, very common, and deserves the same attention
The first month after diagnosis
This isn't a schedule to keep up with. It's what usually helps, week by week, for families going through this.
Week 1
Right now
This diagnosis often lands as grief for a future that was expected to look different, even while the person in front of you is still fully themselves right now.
- ·You don't have to plan for every future stage this week. Early-stage life can still look a lot like it did before.
- ·This was not caused by anything the person or your family did.
- ·Let yourself grieve what this diagnosis means, while this person is still here to be with.
Week 2
What this means day to day, for now
Early on, changes can be subtle. Predictable routines help more right now than any single conversation about the diagnosis.
- ·Establish simple, consistent daily routines. Predictability reduces anxiety and confusion for everyone.
- ·Focus conversation on what the person can still do and enjoy, rather than testing what they remember.
- ·Avoid correcting or arguing over small errors or repeated stories. It rarely helps and often upsets.
Week 3
First steps
Some practical groundwork is easier to do now, while the person can still take part in deciding it, than later.
- ·Prepare legal and financial arrangements early, while the person can still participate in those decisions.
- ·Set up memory aids now, labelled drawers, photo albums with names, so they become familiar early.
- ·Try Sentio's Orientation Companion if a daily grounding routine together feels like a useful place to start.
Week 4
Taking stock
A month in, caregiver burnout is a real risk, starting now, not just later in the journey.
- ·Check in honestly with yourself about your own exhaustion. It deserves the same attention as any symptom.
- ·Notice which routines have actually settled in, and which still need adjusting.
- ·Find support for yourself too, a group, a friend, a professional. This is a long road, and you are on it too.