Communicates mostly through body language (grimace, frown, smile)

  All Alzheimer's Symptoms

When it happens

Severe-stage dementia

Why it happens

The ability to communicate without words outlasts the ability to communicate with speech.

What you can do

  • Pay close attention to subtle signals in order to learn this unique language. Note when certain expressions occur. For example, someone who grimaces when turned a particular way in bed may have a pulled muscle or a bed sore.

  • Use gentle, loving touch. That's a language that can still be understood loud and clear.

  • Continue to use, and even exaggerate, your own nonverbal communications to help make yourself understood. Smile more broadly than usual, or frown empathetically when asking a question about something that may be wrong.