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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Does it matter? I am pretty sure my mom has dementia but since there aren’t really any medications that have definitely shown to help or any treatments what’s the point if a diagnosis? 
There a cognitive tests you can give your mom. I gave my mom one I think was called the Montreal cognitive something. I give it to her every six months and unfortunately can see the decline. It’s the one where part of it is drawing a clock set to a time like ten minutes past 11. [/quote]

Yes, it matters for many reasons:
1.) It's a wake up call to get POA and start planning for her future decline,
2.) If you have her permission to tell friends and family, it's the difference between people assume she has become self-absorbed and rude with age and them accepting she has a disease and gently re-answering questions or changing the subject rather than thinking she doesn't care enough to remember important new things happening in their life.
3.) It's about not taking it personally if she starts making accusations about you or further evaluating when she is suddenly paranoid about the housekeeper she has had for 20 years.
4.) It's about getting things in order before she starts giving away her money to every person who tells her a sad story rather than keeping it for her own care.

There are so many reasons it makes a huge difference to know.[/quote]

Sadly it can also be about proving a family member is taking advantage of someone impaired. We have a sibling who is a doctor who was estranged from mom. Said sibling has gotten close to mom, is getting financial handouts and has convinced mom not to get a dementia evaluation claiming "it would be too upsetting to her" when in reality according to my brother she is trying to make it much harder to prove she took advantage of the disabled as she gets her financial gifts and other benefits. Mom is thrilled to finally be so close to her long lost daughter and she is thrilled that the doctor tells her she is just fine and doesn't need a cognitive evaluation. it would be impossible to convince her that a doctor, let alone one who she birthed, may not be giving her good medical advice.[/quote]

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