Not all memory glitches signal Alzheimer's. Use this list, adapted from the Alzheimer's Association, to help you decide whether to seek a professional opinion.

1. Memory loss
Normal: Occasionally forgetting appointments or names of acquaintances, books, or movies.
Worrisome: Forgetting names of close friends or family members, being unable to remember things just learned, and being unaware of the memory loss.

2. Difficulty with familiar tasks
Normal: Occasionally forgetting why you came into a room or what you planned to say.
Worrisome: Frequently being unable to perform everyday tasks, like cooking a meal, making a phone call, or playing a game.

3. Language problems
Normal: Sometimes having trouble finding the right word.
Worrisome: Often forgetting simple words or substituting unusual ones. For example, someone looking for a toothbrush might ask instead for "that thing for my mouth."

4. Disorientation
Normal: Forgetting the day of the week or where you are going.
Worrisome: Getting lost in the neighborhood or forgetting how you got somewhere.

5. Poor judgment
Normal: Making a questionable decision from time to time. For example, anyone might choose not to wear a hat or gloves in cold weather.
Worrisome: Frequently making clearly inappropriate decisions, such as forgetting to wear pants or a shirt, wearing several layers of warm clothes in hot weather, or giving away large sums of money to a stranger.

6. Problems with abstract thinking
Normal: Having a hard time balancing a checkbook.
Worrisome: Forgetting what numbers are for or how to do simple addition and subtraction.

7. Misplacing things
Normal: Occasionally losing a wallet or keys.
Worrisome: Putting things in unusual places, like keys in the freezer or a wallet in the sugar bowl.

8. Mood changes
Normal: Occasionally feeling moody or sad.
Worrisome: Rapid mood swings—from calm to tears to anger, for example—for no apparent reason.

9. Personality changes
Normal: Gradual, modest changes as you age.
Worrisome: Dramatic personality shifts, becoming, for example, suspicious, fearful, or dependent.

10. Loss of initiative
Normal: Sometimes feeling weary of work or social obligations.
Worrisome: Extreme passivity, for example, sitting in front of the TV for hours or sleeping much more than usual.