Compass is still being developed and is effectively in beta. Some content and features may be incomplete, change, or not work as expected.

Content is anchored to trusted sources where available, but Compass has not yet been clinically reviewed. It provides general information rather than medical advice.

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Symptoms and clinical language

Apathy

A reduced drive to start things, which is a brain change rather than not caring.

What it means

Somebody may want an outcome and still not initiate the steps toward it. Families often read it as giving up or as depression, and it is neither.

Why you might hear it

It is one of the changes cognitive screening asks about.
It is among the hardest things for families to interpret without an explanation.

What it is not

Not depression, and not a lack of interest in the people around them.

People who may help

Where Compass goes into this

About this explanation

These are plain explanations of words you may come across, not advice about your own situation. Where a word matters to a decision, the question pages go into it properly, and your own team is the place to take it.