When thinking about the stage in which independence is lost, it is important to recall that dementia is defined as the loss of cognitive Cognitive
See cognition function (such as memory Memory
The ability to process information that requires attention, storage, and retrieval., language, judgment) that is severe enough to interfere with occupational or social functioning. When people develop dementia, and begin to lose the ability to function, they are necessarily obliged to rely on someone else. Thus loss of independence is a defining part of dementia.