Alzheimer’s disease occurs when amyloid protein deposits and tau protein deposits form plaques and tangles around brain cells.
A diagnosis for Alzheimer’s disease could be given for mild, moderate, or severe symptoms. As symptoms begin they often include short-term memory loss and increasing forgetfulness. As symptoms progress, they may include more impulsive behaviors, agitation, and issues recognizing loved ones. More severe symptoms require higher levels of care, as someone may struggle to communicate their needs and may need more physical assistance.
Lewy Body Dementia, or Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB), involves abnormal protein deposits called alpha-synuclein (“Lewy bodies”) that collect in the cortex and affect chemical messengers.
It’s common but sometimes more difficult to diagnose because it’s so closely related to other disorders like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.
Lewy Body Dementia often causes cognitive decline including inability to organize thoughts, sleep disorders, and visual hallucinations, as well as mobility issues including muscle rigidity and loss of coordination.
Those with Lewy Body Dementia often need a broad spectrum of care to manage symptoms.
Vascular dementia is also called post-stroke dementia because it’s caused by brain damage that is traced to cardiovascular problems or mini-strokes.
It is commonly diagnosed when drastic health or behavioral changes occur immediately following a stroke.
Symptoms correspond to the parts of the brain where strokes are detected and cause changes in personality and reasoning. They’re primarily cognitive, including forgetfulness, misplacing items, delusions or hallucinations, and lack of judgment.
Medication management is important in preventing or slowing further brain damage and specialized care is often needed to manage heart health and cognitive symptoms.
Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD) or Frontotemporal Degeneration occurs when abnormal amounts or forms of proteins (tau and TDP-43) accumulate inside neurons in the frontal and temporal lobes.
Symptoms might include changes in personality and emotional states, difficulty organizing, impulsive behaviors, struggles with understanding and speaking language, and movement issues such as shaky hands and difficulty balancing or walking.
As the disease progresses, people often withdraw from those around them and their surroundings. Communication skills weaken, making it important to provide specialized care to keep the person as comfortable and healthy as possible.
We understand that getting a dementia diagnosis raises many questions for your entire family. At The Kensington Reston, we’re here to help you navigate this new stage of life.
The answers to these commonly asked questions are a starting point. If you have further questions, please reach out to us and share your thoughts, questions, and needs: (571) 570-9607.
Dementia itself is not a specific disease. It is instead a term that encompasses a group of conditions that cause cognitive impairment.
The various forms of dementia can affect a person’s way of thinking and cause issues with memory loss, reasoning, problem solving, speaking and understanding language, and other cognitive functions.
Dementia is progressive, so its symptoms worsen over time and interfere with a person’s activities of daily life, sometimes even causing physical limitations. In its early stages, it may go undetected but as it progresses through the seven stages, it often causes a decline in a person’s ability to function independently.
Although there is currently no cure for dementia, The Kensington Reston provides treatments that improve the quality of life for those with dementia and their loved ones.
Alzheimer’s disease is one type of dementia. It’s actually the most common type that is diagnosed, accounting for 60-80% of all cases.
Alzheimer’s causes difficulty with memory, thinking, and sometimes behavior. As it progresses from early-stage Alzheimer’s disease to middle and advanced stages, the person diagnosed may need more attention and care.
It currently has no cure but, like many other forms of dementia, there are treatments that improve the quality of life for those diagnosed and their families.
The Kensington Reston provides the right specialized treatment, tools, environment, and compassion to give each resident the individualized support they need.
The right time to transition a loved one to memory care is different for every family.
It may be prompted by a specific dementia diagnosis. Or you may consider changes in behavior or needs that may require more specialized care.
Is there a noticeable difference in cognitive function, behavioral changes, or diminishing physical health? Has physical safety become a concern? What would provide the best circumstances both for the person with dementia and their caregivers?
It’s also important to research and consider what care options are available and what you feel most comfortable with. Dementia can be challenging to navigate, so you want a care team that your family can trust so that you feel confident about your next steps.
We’re here to help if you would like to discuss your questions and options to know if memory care is the right option for you.
Dementia is usually caused by degeneration in the cerebral cortex of the brain, as the cerebral cortex is responsible for our thoughts, memories, actions, and personality.
Often, a buildup of certain proteins in the brain or cardiovascular issues such as strokes can lead to deterioration of brain cells in this region, causing the cognitive impairments that characterize dementia.
Memory care is a specialized form of assisted living where residents live in an environment that is safe and structured, designed specifically to manage their symptoms, lower stress, and provide the compassion and care they need to live comfortably.
Memory care at The Kensington Reston provides residents with around-the-clock care from specially trained medical professionals and staff.
Our two memory care neighborhoods allow for tailored and individualized care: Connections and Haven.
We also provide partnership programs and collaborations with specialized professionals who generate positive care outcomes based on current research findings.
To help residents thrive as much as possible physically, mentally, and spiritually, we provide customized small-group activities, special time with family and friends, and all-day dining as well.
Connections is designed for residents who are experiencing early-to-middle stages of Alzheimer’s and provides an intimate and comfortable environment. As such, the neighborhood cares for those who are showing increasing signs of memory loss.
In Connections, we strive to help residents to engage with interactions and socialization every day independently. Our daily programming guides them to find purpose and meaning every day. We stay attuned to our residents’ maximum cognitive abilities and recall to make the most of their strengths, supporting them and their families.
Designed for those residents showing more advanced signs of memory loss, Haven provides peace and security for those with middle-to-late stages of Alzheimer’s.
Since these individuals require more assistance and a higher level of care, we strive to create a safe and soothing space with minimal agitation and an abundance of compassion.
At The Kensington Reston, we specialize in providing progressive memory care and enhanced assisted living services, offering the opportunity for true aging in place with a full spectrum of care.
We’re a community, putting family first and treating your loved one as if they were part of our own family. It’s helped us earn a reputation for ongoing staff loyalty as well.
We understand that managing dementia can be a difficult challenge. Our hope is that we can lift the burden of care management to provide a safe, enriching, and peaceful home for your loved one.
With our trusted care, you can focus on the many beautiful shared moments that are still ahead for you and your loved one.
We’re here to discuss any needs and questions you have and to explain all of the memory care services we offer.
We’ll help you determine whether our specialized services meet the needs of you, your loved one, and the entire family.
Becoming a resident at The Kensington Reston means receiving a full spectrum of continuous and customized care to age comfortably in place.
Receiving a dementia diagnosis brings on many challenges for families, from coping with changes to taking action and managing care needs.
The Kensington Reston specializes in navigating these challenges. We’re here to answer questions about dementia care, offer innovative care and therapy options, and provide a tour of our unique memory care and assisted living communities.
Share a few details about your situation. We’ll get in touch to see how we can help. If you’d like to connect with someone right now, call us at (571) 570-9607.
Meet Meaghan, Our Connections Memory Care Manager
Meaghan Dingwall comes from years of experience in memory care assisted living. Meaghan is a Certified Dementia Practitioner, PAC certified, and a certified Alzheimer and Dementia care trainer. The culmination of her experiences and her education led her to provide an engaging, fulfilling, caring life for our residents. Meaghan takes a holistic approach to care and believes in meaningful engagement throughout one’s lifetime. It is Meaghan’s passion to enrich the lives of those living with a cognitive impairment and ensure their safety, health, and well-being.
Meet Lindsey, Our Haven Memory Care Manager
Lindsey began her career at The Kensington in 2021 as Assisted Living Manager and has since grown to Haven Memory Care Manager and Executive Director in Training. She says, “I am passionate about caring for seniors and love being a part of The Kensington Family. Our team is driven by our core values as we live Our Promise to love and care for your family as we do our own.”
With enhanced assisted living and progressive memory care services, The Kensington Reston provides a full spectrum of care for those diagnosed with dementia.
Memory care is most effective when each resident’s degree of memory loss and individual health needs are considered in designing their unique care program. Our residents age comfortably in our community while also having opportunities to thrive mentally, physically, and spiritually.
Led by our dedicated Managers of Memory Care, our Memory Care team is available day and night to assist with all stages of dementia.
To learn more about how our services may apply to your situation, reach out to us at (571) 570-9607.
Physician services on-site
Licensed nurses on-site 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
On-site physical therapy, rehabilitation, and fitness center
Two memory care neighborhoods, Connections and Haven, designed for all stages of dementia
Extensive and ongoing support for each resident
Comprehensively trained caregivers and staff
Medication and diabetes management
Psychological and psychiatric services
Specialized all-day dining services
Complimentary meals for families and guests
Life enrichment programming, 7 days a week
