Alzheimer's Care
If you are the primary caregiver for someone with Alzheimer’s disease, you understand the physical, emotional, and mental toll it can take. Every day can be unpredictable, and no two families share the same journey.
A professional caregiver can provide specialized support and assistance for your loved one to enhance their quality of life and ensure their safety and comfort throughout the progression of the disease. You will feel confident knowing your loved one is safe and comfortable at home with Visiting Angels by their side.
Alzheimer's Care Support at Home
Alzheimer’s disease symptoms can affect nearly every aspect of daily life. You and your family may have to manage your loved one’s personality changes, safety concerns, and personal care such as bathing and dressing.
You don’t have to manage Alzheimer’s care alone.
Visiting Angels will help you create a comprehensive, personalized home care plan to address your loved one’s unique needs. We tackle daily caregiving responsibilities so you can focus on enjoying meaningful moments and making cherished memories with your loved one.
Our services include:
- Accompaniment to appointments
- Coordinating care with other providers
- Companionship
- Grocery shopping
- Help with dressing, grooming, bathing, and toileting
- Laundry and light housekeeping
- Managing episodes of confusion, anxiety, or anger
- Meal planning and preparation
- Medication reminders
- Mobility and transfer assistance
- Wandering prevention
Alzheimer’s Care Services for Every Stage
We will meticulously attend to your loved one's well-being and tailor services to their specific requirements and the distinctive hurdles they face during each particular stage of Alzheimer’s disease.
Some of our services you can expect at each Alzheimer’s stage include:
Our flexible Alzheimer’s care services are offered part-time and full-time, 24/7, temporarily, and via respite care. We also provide dementia care services for people with vascular dementia, Lewy body dementia, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, and other memory disorders.
Early Stage
- Provide reminders for important tasks or events
- Maintain familiar routines
- Help with daily tasks, such as cooking, errands, light housekeeping, and transportation
- Provide social interaction and companionship
Middle Stage
- Provide reminders, directions, and help with self-care
- Offer limited choices for meals, clothing, etc. to preserve feelings of control and dignity
- Redirect to a pleasant activity or memory during times of frustration or agitation
- Interpret needs by becoming familiar with routines, gestures, and sounds
Late Stage
- Provide personal care services, such as grooming, feeding, and bathing
- Observe for changes in needs that may trigger behaviors
Family Care
- Lower your stress and anxiety
- Give you an extra pair of hands
- Allow you time to work and exercise
- Prevent family caregiver burnout
Get Started with In-Home Alzheimer’s Care
Making decisions about in-home senior care for a loved one with Alzheimer’s can be overwhelming. At Visiting Angels, we have more than 25 years of experience in easing the transition through these life changes for families across the U.S.
Whether you are ready to begin with our specialized services right away or simply interested in learning more, we will make the process as easy as possible.
- Schedule a Free Home Care Consultation
A Visiting Angels coordinator will meet with your family to discuss specific needs and expectations during a free home care consultation, We’ll answer your questions and let you know how professional caregivers can help.
- Create a Customized Care Plan
If you choose Visiting Angels, your coordinator will complete a home care assessment. We’ll use this information to create a detailed plan and schedule that’s personalized for your family.
- Meet Your Caregiver
We thoroughly screen and select the best professional caregivers for families. We’ll match you with the ideal caregiver based on your loved one’s condition, needs, preferences, and personality. You’ll feel confident knowing your loved one is safe and comfortable at home with a Visiting Angels caregiver by their side.
Contact us or call 800-365-4189 to request more information about our Alzheimer's care services.
FAQs About Alzheimer’s Disease
What Is Alzheimer’s Disease?
Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive, degenerative brain disorder characterized by memory loss, cognitive decline, and behavioral changes. Symptoms worsen over time, usually over several years, and can have a severe effect on performing daily tasks and activities.
Alzheimer’s is considered a terminal condition, with an average life expectancy of 4 to 8 years after diagnosis, though some individuals live 15 or 20 years after their initial diagnosis.
What Is the Difference Between Alzheimer’s and Dementia?
Dementia is an umbrella term for a wide range of brain disorders that are characterized by memory loss. Alzheimer’s is the most common type of dementia. According to estimates, Alzheimer’s cases account for somewhere between 60% to 80% of all cases of dementia.
Everyone with Alzheimer’s has dementia, but not everyone with dementia has Alzheimer’s. People living with vascular dementia, for instance, have symptoms similar to Alzheimer’s but the cause of their dementia is different.
What Are the Risk Factors for Alzheimer’s Disease?
While scientists are still researching the exact cause of Alzheimer’s disease, researchers have identified a number of risk factors. The three biggest risk factors are:
- Advanced age: In most cases, symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease begin after age 65.
- Genetics: People with a family history of Alzheimer’s are at higher risk of developing the disease themselves.
- Heart health: Poor cardiovascular health increases one’s risk. Those with a history of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, stroke, or heart attack will be at higher risk.
Other risk factors include:
- Heavy smoking
- Heavy drinking
- High stress levels
- History of head trauma
- Sleeping problems
What Are the Symptoms of Alzheimer’s?
Most symptoms, particularly early signs of Alzheimer’s, are expressed through a person’s speech, thought patterns, and behaviors. The most prominent symptoms include:
- Short-term and long-term memory loss
- Trouble solving simple problems
- Uncommon struggles with day-to-day activities
- Words forgotten or mixed up
- Items lost more frequently
- Confusion about current time or place, names, and relationships
- Irrational, irritable, or depressed behaviors and actions
How Does Alzheimer’s Disease Progress?
Researchers believe the disease begins many years before signs appear. Symptoms typically start to appear in aging adults, though some cases of Alzheimer’s begin in a person’s 40s or 50s.
At first, symptoms will be mild and will have minimal impact on the person’s well-being. As the disease progresses, symptoms develop from mild to moderate to severe. By the final stages of the disease, the person may lose all short-term and long-term memory, the ability to speak and to understand speech, and the ability to perform basic personal activities, such as how to use the bathroom or eat on their own.
Is There a Cure for Alzheimer’s Disease?
Currently, there is no known cure for Alzheimer’s disease, and its progress is believed to be irreversible. While researchers continue to search for a cure, modern treatments and clinical trials are working toward slowing disease onset, delaying symptoms, and reducing progression.
Doctors recommend that people at risk of or living with Alzheimer’s disease focus on healthy lifestyle choices, particularly focusing on cardiovascular health. Interventions such as improved sleep habits, increased omega-3 intake, and decreased stress are also proven to reduce the risk.
What Are the Care Options for My Loved One With Alzheimer’s?
As Alzheimer’s progresses, people living with the disease need high levels of in-home memory care to ensure their well-being and safety. Friends or family members may care for your loved one with early and mid-stage Alzheimer’s. As the disease reaches its later stages, professional support is often needed.
Moving your loved one into a nursing care facility is an option. However, this can be a traumatic experience, and it is typically considered a last resort. Another option is to hire Alzheimer’s home care services, such as those offered by Visiting Angels. Our specialized home caregivers help people age in place with Alzheimer’s disease.
What If My Loved One With Alzheimer’s Can No Longer Live At Home?
Visiting Angels offers services in assisted living and nursing home facilities. Because staff members at these facilities tend to look after more than one older adult during shifts, families decide to hire a professional caregiver to supplement the facility’s services. As needs change, we can increase the duration or frequency of care for your loved one, day or night.
Serving Western Fairfax County including Centerville, Chantilly, Clifton, Lorton & Ft. Belvoir
Visiting Angels CHANTILLY, VA
4229 Lafayette Center Drive #1675Chantilly, VA 20151
Phone: (703) 530-8811