This is one disease that is feared by everyone. Consequently, many people fear that may have Alzheimer's because they forget things frequently or can't remember where they put a certain item. If you don't know the signs and symptoms of Alzheimer's, this article will help ease your mind.

Does this happen to you often?

You had your car keys in your hand but now you can't remember where you laid them down.
You've searched and searched for your reading glasses - only to discover you're wearing them.
You go to another room in the house and can't remember why.
You meet an old friend on the street and can't remember their name.

Sound familiar? If it does, you're not alone - and you don't have Alzheimer's. The above scenarios are more often than not due to being busy and having too many things on your mind. In other words - multi-tasking.

Alzheimer's isn't losing your car keys. It's having your car keys in your hand and not being able to remember what you use them for.

Alzheimer's isn't not being able to find your glasses. It's not knowing what reading glasses are.

Alzheimer's isn't going into another room in the house and not knowing why. It's going into another room and not knowing where you are.

Alzheimer's is not forgetting an old friend's name. It's never knowing that you ever knew them.

As you can see, there is a significant difference between plain, old forgetfulness and Alzheimer's disease. That's the good news.

The bad news is that Alzheimer's is sneaky. It can be working on your brain before symptoms ever show up.

There are three stages to Alzheimer's.

Early-stage Alzheimer's

Memory loss starts being noticed but the person can compensate and still perform daily duties. The person becomes:

Easily confused

Repeats questions and stories in the same conversation

Can't remember personal history

Has trouble doing routine tasks like preparing dinner, grocery shopping, or paying bills

Disoriented to time and place

Develops "strange" behaviors such as forgetting to eat or eating non-stop, hiding objects of little value

Mid-stage Alzheimer's

During mid-stage Alzheimer's, there is a noticeable decline in the functioning of bodily functions. The person's appearance changes noticeably as they can no longer dress and bathe themselves. They start to wander, have hallucinations, and become paranoid.

Late-stage Alzheimer's

This stage is marked by complete deterioration of the personality and loss of control over bodily functions. It requires total dependence on others for even the most basic activities of daily living.

They no longer recognize family members and spouses. They need help with all daily activities. All communication skills have been lost and they speak very little if at all.

They can't write or comprehend reading material. They lose control over all body functions.

Knowing the signs and symptoms of Alzheimer's is important to either give you peace of mind and being reassured that you don't have it or by being able to diagnose it in it's early stages.