The most commonly recognized symptom of dementia is memory loss. People with dementia, especially a cortical dementia such as Alzheimer’s disease, often have problems transferring short-term memory into long-term memories. This may include forgetting the name of someone who has just been introduced or asking the same question repeatedly without ever remembering what the answer was or even asking the question in the first place. People with dementia may also find themselves misplacing items or putting them in strange places (e.g. the phone in the freezer, keys in the oven). In most cases memory loss gets worse over time and is one of the most debilitating symptoms of dementia.

Other symptoms of dementia may include:

• Aphasia. Aphasia is a loss of the ability to use and understand language. People with dementia may forget words and have difficulty communicating with others (expressive aphasia). They may also have problems understanding spoken or written words (receptive aphasia). It is often described as being similar to traveling to a foreign country and being surrounded by people speaking an unknown language.
  
  
• Poor judgment. People with dementia may exercise poor judgment when it comes to making decisions. For example, they may not wear a coat when it is obviously cold outside.
  
  
• Mood and personality changes. People with dementia, particularly subcortical dementia (e.g. Huntington’s disease), may find that they experience sudden changes of mood or personality. This can be especially hard for caregivers to cope with.
  
  
• Lethargy and depression. Many people with dementia experience some form of depression, often because of chemical imbalances in the brain. The frustration associated with dementia can also cause depression and lethargy and patients may stop attempting to communicate or perform certain tasks.