Mil has always been pretty hyper personality wise and alzheimers seemed to make it worse. She has always been a nervous talker, a chatter box. All of a sudden she seems rather subdued and is talking less and is slow in her speech. (Kind of like a very depressed person gets ). Is this part of the progression?
Secondly, you had to start speaking slowly and always looking at them so they could see, hear you clearly.
Don't speak more than one thought, sentence or 2 at a time -- pause and give them a moment to process before you go on.
Lastly, it could be a stroke, mild brain bleed or other.
Agee with others, if this is sudden behavior change, go to ER and have checked out.
Do check with her doctor.
As the Alzheimer's progressed, he talked only about what Aunt Rachel fed the pig. The last time he mentioned the farm, his complete story was, "Aunt Rachel had a pig." Do take all the advice here about checking with a doctor.
#1 no so bad -she's trying to get her thoughts together
#2 URGENT - STROKE, BUT I WANT TO URGE YOU IF SHE'S HAD A STROKE, TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE.