Dementia can be a frightening condition for individuals who aren’t quite aware they even have dementia. The early warning signs can seem so normal that they are easily overlooked. Typically it is not until other people start to notice changes that the individual with the dementia even begins to consider it as the root of the problem. When it comes to dementia there are a few early symptoms that seem like normal life occurrences.

Until these begin to combine and individuals begin to experience multiple symptoms at once they usually don’t put two and two together and realize something might be occurring. Keep a watchful eye for any of these 4 early symptoms:

1. Memory loss
Memory loss starts out gradual. Many people do not even catch it at the onset because they easily blame it on other aspects of their life. In many cases you may get busy and wrapped up in activities, work and family. You become forgetful but then dismiss it as too much on your plate and think when things calm down you’ll remember more. This is not always true. Early memory loss is simplistic in the fact that you just forget things that are mostly irrelevant. As time goes on the things you begin to forget are more important. You might find yourself keeping a calendar to help you remember things you normally would not forget.

2. Inability to focus
Another early indicator of dementia is the inability to focus. This is also a condition that many adults will assume has nothing to do with dementia at the onset. It is easy to become distracted and focus on work, family, the house or a trip coming up. Sometimes with so much on your mind you lose focus of other things. You find yourself zoning out more during conversations and find yourself wondering what someone was just talking about. If you are going through a stressful time or are extremely busy this could be nothing but if you notice it is becoming common for you then you should speak to your health care provider.

3. Confusion
There are always going to be times in life where we are confused. Perhaps some directions are unclear or you think you heard something but it did not quite make sense. This is normal and nothing to be worried about. When you find yourself confused often because you are unable to retain what you just read or heard then it can greatly impact your life. Simple instructions can become troublesome. Continual confusion and inability to understand processes can mean something is going on neurologically.

4. Misplacing items
Items that are always stored in the same place all of the time should be relatively simple to find. If you are constantly misplacing these items then it could be a sign that something else is going on. If you have always put your keys on the table by the door and all of a sudden notice you are not doing that action anymore and are constantly losing your keys you need to consider why. Are you coming into the house in a hurry and not paying attention? Are you distracted? Are you forgetting to do this task that you have done every day of your life for years? Pay attention to misplaced items because if you keep misplacing them it could be a sign of early dementia.