With this family member, once the dementia really took hold, we looked back in time and recognized the early signs.

His posture had changed to always leaning forward a bit, like his head was moving faster than his feet. This also contributed to many falls. His gait changed like his feet had gotten heavy, or they'd swing outward as he walked. Watch how Mr. T walks now, especially the ramp incident. I've seen that before.

He always told stories but he started to repeat them over and over, sometimes at the same meal. Right in the middle of meals he'd stand up and walk off. A rambling word salad began to dominate his speech pattern.