After a loved one begins exhibiting unusual symptoms, Florida family members may worry. While it may simply be age or stress, misplacing important items, becoming disoriented in familiar places or asking the same questions over and over may indicate the fearful diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease. It is critical to obtain early intervention to minimize the progression of the disease, but it is also important that loved ones and family members are alert to the potential financial ramifications of dementia.
Researchers say that those who suffer from Alzheimer’s may have been making serious financial mistakes as long as six years before their diagnosis. The hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease is cognitive impairment, which means a loved one may struggle with any of the following:
- keeping track of which bills have been paid and which are due
- remembering whether donations have already been made to charities soliciting them
- running up charges on a credit card
- making unusual withdrawals from financial accounts
- giving money away to unscrupulous friends or family members
- falling for common scams of those that prey on the elderly
Those in the early stages of Alzheimer’s may unwittingly drain their savings on scam investments. Many sign over the deeds to their homes, ruin their credit scores or mire themselves in overwhelming debt. Difficult as it may be for loved ones, there are compassionate legal steps to take, such as seeking guardianship, that will protect a vulnerable family member who has not put safeguards in place through estate planning.