Unit 40 P2 M1 Dementia Megan Scully
P2: Outline possible effects of dementia on an individual’s health and quality of life
M1: Assess possible effects of different types of dementia on individuals and their families
Individuals with any form of dementia will experience a variety of personality and behavioural
changes which may include; their personal interests or personal hobbies. Dementia will also affect
the quality of life and also the physical and mental health as the ability to think independently
reduces, this implies that these individuals do not have complete control over their everyday life,
which will consequently affect their health in aspects such as; mobility and diet. Vascular dementia,
for example, means medications will likely be prescribed in order to control the associated
conditions such as; diabetes, high blood pressure, heart problems and high cholesterol. The ability to
control these effectively may aid in decelerating the progression of the dementia.
The mental health of the individual may also be affected, as individuals who have recently received
the dementia diagnosis may experience a variety of emotions such as;
Grief
Individuals diagnosed with dementia may experience feelings of grief for the loss of their previous
life and undesirable necessity of their new life. Grief may also be experienced as they may
understand that their future with the disease includes loss of memory and they may forget family
and friends.
Shock
Individuals diagnosed with dementia may also experience shock as they may not feel prepared or
may find it sudden, many individuals will experience shock as the concept of self-mortality is not
usually over thought, people often have the thought that diseases such as dementia or cancer for
example will never affect them.
Anger
Another emotion that individuals with dementia may experience is anger. This may be due to the
feeling that not enough was done or experienced in the past whilst the individual was still healthy, or
the feeling that the individual has been deprived of a fulfilling and content future.
Fear
The individual may also experience feelings of fear for what will become of them, the reduction in
capacity in regards to their memory and the unpredictable progression of the illness.
These are emotions that pose the possibility of remaining with the individual throughout the
remainder of their life. Emotions such as these also pose risk of the individual developing cognitive
problems such as anxiety and depression which may instigate a much quicker decrease in the
physical and mental health of the individual.
The financial situation of the individual will also be influenced negatively as the individual will be
unable to continue in employment due to the nature or the disease. The individual will also be
mentally inapt to effectively manage their personal finances as the condition of the individual begins
to deteriorate. This means the individual will require a trusting individual to control and manage
their finances, however this also opens the option of financial abuse, regardless of how trusting the
individual seems.
The individual will also be affected socially, as they begin to forget names, faces and the personal
relationships they have with others. This may instigate feeling of social isolation from others who
they do recognise. This often causes strains on the marital relationships these individuals have with
their spouses as the spouse of the individual with dementia may feel that the disease is changing
their significant other too dramatically and that the relationship is breaking down when once both
individuals were dependent upon one another physically and emotionally. These individuals may
also find immense difficulties in continuing with their religious and spiritual beliefs and may find they
are unable to visit their place of worship independently. This may introduce feelings of losing
P2: Outline possible effects of dementia on an individual’s health and quality of life
M1: Assess possible effects of different types of dementia on individuals and their families
Individuals with any form of dementia will experience a variety of personality and behavioural
changes which may include; their personal interests or personal hobbies. Dementia will also affect
the quality of life and also the physical and mental health as the ability to think independently
reduces, this implies that these individuals do not have complete control over their everyday life,
which will consequently affect their health in aspects such as; mobility and diet. Vascular dementia,
for example, means medications will likely be prescribed in order to control the associated
conditions such as; diabetes, high blood pressure, heart problems and high cholesterol. The ability to
control these effectively may aid in decelerating the progression of the dementia.
The mental health of the individual may also be affected, as individuals who have recently received
the dementia diagnosis may experience a variety of emotions such as;
Grief
Individuals diagnosed with dementia may experience feelings of grief for the loss of their previous
life and undesirable necessity of their new life. Grief may also be experienced as they may
understand that their future with the disease includes loss of memory and they may forget family
and friends.
Shock
Individuals diagnosed with dementia may also experience shock as they may not feel prepared or
may find it sudden, many individuals will experience shock as the concept of self-mortality is not
usually over thought, people often have the thought that diseases such as dementia or cancer for
example will never affect them.
Anger
Another emotion that individuals with dementia may experience is anger. This may be due to the
feeling that not enough was done or experienced in the past whilst the individual was still healthy, or
the feeling that the individual has been deprived of a fulfilling and content future.
Fear
The individual may also experience feelings of fear for what will become of them, the reduction in
capacity in regards to their memory and the unpredictable progression of the illness.
These are emotions that pose the possibility of remaining with the individual throughout the
remainder of their life. Emotions such as these also pose risk of the individual developing cognitive
problems such as anxiety and depression which may instigate a much quicker decrease in the
physical and mental health of the individual.
The financial situation of the individual will also be influenced negatively as the individual will be
unable to continue in employment due to the nature or the disease. The individual will also be
mentally inapt to effectively manage their personal finances as the condition of the individual begins
to deteriorate. This means the individual will require a trusting individual to control and manage
their finances, however this also opens the option of financial abuse, regardless of how trusting the
individual seems.
The individual will also be affected socially, as they begin to forget names, faces and the personal
relationships they have with others. This may instigate feeling of social isolation from others who
they do recognise. This often causes strains on the marital relationships these individuals have with
their spouses as the spouse of the individual with dementia may feel that the disease is changing
their significant other too dramatically and that the relationship is breaking down when once both
individuals were dependent upon one another physically and emotionally. These individuals may
also find immense difficulties in continuing with their religious and spiritual beliefs and may find they
are unable to visit their place of worship independently. This may introduce feelings of losing
