Dementia: What is it and how does it affect you?

September is dedicated to raising awareness on dementia. It is a sickness that affects increasingly more people year by year, and the second most common cause of death in Australia. In this installment of ‘’Speak my Language’’ with Odysseas Kripotos, go over a few things you need to know about dementia.

Source: Pixabay

Speak My Language is funded by the Federal Government, and is a joint initiative undertaken by the Multicultural Community Councils of NSW, Victoria and Queensland. 

Odysseas Kripotos works at the aged care service ''Fronditha Care''. 

Dementia is a not a specific disease but rather a collection of symptoms caused by a number of disorders that affect the human brain. For the most part, dementia affects our thoughts, behavior and our ability to perform everyday tasks. Dementia can take many forms, with the most common being Alzheimer.

It is still unknown what are the causes of dementia, and most forms are incurable. ''Certain drugs have been proven to reduce some of the symptoms, the moment a person is diagnosed with the disease, the situation is irreversible. For that reason, it is important to receive support from family, friends and carers'' says Odysseas Kripotos.

Dementia is not exclusive to the elderly, although the danger of presenting the disease increases as we grow older.

Being Diagnosed

For most forms of the disease, the patient has to undergo certain tests to determine whether they have dementia. Mr. Kripotos notes that this might cause some difficulties for elderly Greek Australians as the tests require the use of English. ''The education and culture of Greeks who migrated to Australia during the 50s and 60s might also play a role. Another issue is that the tests might be unable to distinguish between dementia and other disorders such as depression'' he said.

Tests for dementia in Greece are similarly unsuitable.

Source: Getty Images

Facing the stigma

One of the goals of ‘’Speak My Language’’ is to combat the stigma associated with dementia. This can often come from the person who suffers from the disease and is unable to accept it. In other cases the patient’s social circles are those unable to adapt to the change in the person’s behavior.

If you suspect that you or one of your loved ones have dementia, you should immediately consult with your doctor.  

The national hotline for dementia is 1800 100 500.

You can find more information in Greek at dementia.org.au.

You can hear the talks of Speak My Language by going to  speakmylanguageradio.com/listen and choosing Greek.   

Press Play to hear more in Greek. 

Source: Pixabay