According to the National Health Service (NHS), Alzheimer’s disease remains the leading cause of dementia across the United Kingdom. Although researchers have made significant progress in understanding its progression and characteristics, the exact cause still isn’t fully known. Medical experts point to several potential factors that may increase the likelihood of developing the condition. These include advancing age, untreated long-term depression, a family history of dementia, and certain lifestyle choices or underlying cardiovascular conditions that may place additional strain on the brain over time. While these factors do not guarantee that someone will develop Alzheimer’s, they are considered meaningful indicators that can raise a person’s overall risk.

The Cleveland Clinic describes Alzheimer’s as a “brain condition that slowly damages your memory, thinking, learning and organizing skills. It’s the most common cause of dementia. Symptoms usually first appear in people older than 65.” Over the years, doctors have emphasized that this illness does not arrive suddenly; instead, it develops gradually, often starting with subtle memory lapses or shifts in routine mental tasks. Many people overlook these early changes or attribute them to stress, fatigue, or the natural aging process. This is why keeping a symptom diary journal can be extremely valuable, especially for those who want to monitor cognitive changes that might otherwise go unnoticed.

The Cleveland Clinic also highlights an important psychological challenge connected to Alzheimer’s: individuals experiencing memory issues may not always recognize the changes happening within themselves. Loved ones, friends, or close colleagues are often the first to detect subtle differences in mood, behavior, or daily functioning. On the clinic’s website, experts explain that “people with memory loss or other Alzheimer’s symptoms may have difficulty recognizing changes in their own mind and body. These signs may be more obvious to loved ones.” This dynamic can be emotionally difficult for families, who may feel unsure about when to speak up or how to support someone who might not yet realize anything is wrong.

While every patient’s journey with Alzheimer’s is unique, the symptoms most commonly associated with the disease include significant memory loss, reduced reasoning abilities, changes in language and communication patterns, personality shifts, difficulty understanding spatial surroundings, and a gradual decline in behavioral consistency. In more advanced stages, many individuals eventually require specialized care. This is why memory care facilities play an important role in providing safe environments where trained professionals can support cognitive changes with patience, structure, and routine.

A Mother’s Story: Staci Marklin’s Early Signs of Alzheimer’s

Among those living with Alzheimer’s is Staci Marklin, a mother from Knoxville, Tennessee, who has chosen to speak openly about her experience with early-onset Alzheimer’s. Her story begins long before her diagnosis, when she first noticed unusual language mix-ups at the age of 47. At that time, she was a busy mother juggling the responsibilities of everyday life with a young child, and like many parents, she assumed her forgetfulness came from exhaustion or distraction. She remembered moments when she would unintentionally swap words — asking someone to “move the carpet” instead of saying “move the curtain,” for example. While small, these moments planted a quiet worry in her mind.

As time went on, other episodes became harder to dismiss. Keeping a symptom diary journal helped her track unusual lapses that she couldn’t explain. “There would be times when things would just disappear from my brain,” she said. “Someone once asked me about a co-worker, and I had absolutely no idea who they were talking about. I could tell it was someone I should know by the way they were talking. It was a few days later when I realized it was a co-worker that I had worked really closely with.” These incidents were frightening, not because they were constant, but because they arrived unpredictably and with no clear pattern.

Knowing that her grandmother had previously been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, Marklin decided that ignoring the problem was no longer an option. She made an appointment with her doctor and explained her symptoms honestly. Although medical professionals told her that Alzheimer’s is uncommon in someone her age, they also acknowledged that early-onset cases do occur. After further testing and evaluation, Marklin underwent an amyloid PET scan — a detailed brain imaging test that can detect amyloid plaques, one of the key indicators of Alzheimer’s disease. In 2024, the results confirmed what she had feared: the scan showed significant amyloid buildup, and she officially received her diagnosis.

The diagnosis itself brought another wave of challenges. Marklin shared that many people struggled to believe her because they associated Alzheimer’s strictly with older adults. “People generally see this as an older person’s disease and view people with Alzheimer’s as if they can’t do anything for themselves,” she explained. “It was difficult for me to get people to believe me and to trust the results I had gotten.” She found herself navigating not only the emotional weight of her diagnosis but also the misconceptions and doubts of others who didn’t understand that Alzheimer’s can affect people decades before retirement age.

Her journey continues today as she works to raise awareness about early-onset Alzheimer’s, encourage others to pay attention to subtle symptoms, and remind families that compassion is essential. Her experience underscores the importance of recognizing cognitive changes early, advocating for proper testing, and understanding that Alzheimer’s isn’t defined by age — it is defined by the profound way it reshapes memory, behavior, and daily life.