Some signs of dementia can also be symptoms of other diseases, making misdiagnosis common. The most common sign of dementia is severe memory loss. The extent of the loss varies depending on the severity of the dementia. Individuals may forget the names of people they have known their entire lives or what they had for dinner within hours of eating. People with dementia also have difficulty communicating, organizing and reasoning. They will begin to lose the ability to perform ADLs, or activities of daily living, and as the disease worsens, they will most likely no longer be able to live off their own resources.