Reversible conditions

Many other medical problems cause symptoms similar to Alzheimer's. That's why it's so important to consult a doctor if you've noticed memory lapses or uncharacteristic mood swings in yourself or in someone close to you. The problem may be a potentially reversible illness, such as depression, a metabolic disorder such as hypothyroidism, a reaction to a drug, or a vitamin deficiency.
Ask your doctor

To help rule out some of these other problems, here's a list of questions you may want to ask your doctor:

• Could some of my medications be interacting? If you take more than one medication a day, there is a chance that these drugs could interact in your body, producing such symptoms as dizziness and memory loss. Give your doctor a list of all the medicines you use, including herbal remedies and over-the-counter items such as arthritis cream.

• Have I lost or gained any weight? Your weight is a factor in the dosage for some types of drugs. Losing or gaining even 10 pounds could make you have too much or too little medicine in your body, which might result in symptoms that mimic Alzheimer's disease.

• Could I be dehydrated? Older people are at higher risk of dehydration because the ability to feel thirst decreases with age. While dehydration itself can cause confusion, it can also increase the concentration of medicine in your blood, which can affect your mental processes.
  

• Might I have a concussion? Some people can lose consciousness after a fall and not realize it. Ask your doctor to check you over if you find an unexplained, tender lump on your head. Also talk to your doctor if you start to feel mentally fuzzy after what seems like a minor fall.

• Could I be depressed? Sometimes, family members and even health professionals suspect Alzheimer's disease in older adults who are really just depressed. Your doctor can use neurological and psychological evaluations to test you for depression.

• Could I be drinking too much? Alcohol is really just another drug, which can cause memory loss all on its own or by interacting with your medicines.

Detective work
A multitude of things can cause forgetfulness, and many of them are reversible. Work with your doctor to determine what's going on with your memory and what can be done about it.

Memory loss: When To Seek Help

Alzheimer's symptoms follow a pattern distinct from that of normal memory loss.
Everyone forgets things. How many times have you lost your car keys or forgotten the name of a person you just met? Forgetfulness tends to increase with age, but there's a big difference between normal absent-mindedness and the type of memory loss associated with Alzheimer's disease.
What's normal?

Normal age-related memory loss doesn't prevent you from living a full and productive life. You just need more time to remember a name or the task you had set out to do. You're aware that you're forgetful and may even joke about it.

People with memory loss due to something other than normal aging, such as Alzheimer's disease, may feel that something's not quite right, but they're unable to pinpoint what's bothering them. Rather than call attention to a memory lapse, they may behave as if everything is fine.
Additional symptoms

Memory loss associated with Alzheimer's gets worse over time, but it certainly is not the only symptom of the disease. Some of the earliest signs and symptoms of Alzheimer's disease include:

• Asking the same questions repeatedly
• Difficulty finding words or use of inappropriate words
• Not being able to complete familiar tasks, such as following a recipe
• Misplacing items in inappropriate places, such as putting a wallet in the refrigerator
• Becoming lost while driving on familiar streets
• Undergoing sudden changes in mood or behavior for no apparent reason

What Is Narcolepsy?

Believe it or not, thousands of people suffer from a strange condition in which they are prone to suddenly fall asleep in the middle of a sentence. They will be talking one minute and the next minute they are passed out on the floor! Narcolepsy is a chronic neurological disorder that can attack sporadically and is caused by the brain’s inability to normally regulate the sleep and wake cycles. People who suffer from this will actually fall asleep at the drop of a hat. Narcolepsy is a sporadic disorder affecting a region of the central nervous system that regulates sleep and wakefulness. It interrupts daytime wakefulness such that excessive daytime sleepiness is often the first sign. It slowly develops over several months or years especially if not treated immediately.

It really is true that one minute you might be wide awake and the next minute fast asleep. Throughout the day, if you are suffering from narcolepsy, you will experience excessive daytime sleepiness or EDS as a primary symptom. When this sleeping urge becomes too strong, you will instantly fall asleep for periods lasting from a few seconds to several minutes. If you are unfortunate enough to suffer from this rare disorder, you could remain asleep for up to an hour or longer. If the boss catches you like this at work, you won’t be likely to hold onto your job too long! It is true, however, that if you have experienced falling asleep while working, cooking, or even driving, you may have narcolepsy and may need to seek out a physician. Although it is rare, this condition has been found to be the third highest primary diagnosed sleep disorder among many sleep clinics.

For most adults, it has been clinically proven that 8 hours of normal sleep is composed of 4-6 separate sleep cycles. A sleep cycle is defined as beginning with a non-rapid eye movement (NREM) and followed by the rapid eye movement (REM). This sequence of transition from NREM to REM is due to the interactions of the nerve cells in the brain. When these cycles aren’t functioning correctly, the person begins to experience excessive daytime sleepiness.

Aside from the excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS), there are other major symptoms which characterize narcolepsy. One of these is called cataplexy which is marked by a sudden loss of voluntary muscle tone. The person may just go weak and fall over. These attacks are sometimes so sudden that they can even surprise and scare the patient. They can be brought about by strong emotions like anger, depression, laughter, fright, or surprise. One minute they are laughing and the next minute they are snoring! Vivid hallucinations right after falling asleep or even upon awakening are also common with this disorder. They are referred to as hypnagogic hallucinations. These delusional experiences can be very frightening and can be accompanied by episodes of sleep paralysis at the beginning or end of the sleep cycle.

Narcolepsy is a chronic disorder affecting a region of the central nervous system that regulates sleep and wakefulness. As the dreaming stage of sleep (REM sleep) interrupts daytime wakefulness, a series of symptoms commonly appear. The National Institutes of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and other institutes of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have conducted research about narcolepsy but, still, there was found to be no cure for it.