Sundowning individuals are generally dementia patients, but even with normal cognitive functioning elderly can experience symptoms from time to time (Bedrosian & Nelson, 2013). Sundowning is believed to have been around for very many years, but it was first reported in clinical literature more than 70 years ago (Bedrosian & Nelson, 2013). Sundowning is difficult to define at times because it represents several neuropsychiatric symptoms that present themselves in a variety of neurological issues, like dementia (Evans & Grossberg, 2016). It is usually viewed as the sign of an underlying chronic disease, stress, or the combination of the two (Evans & Grossberg, 2016). The mechanisms surrounding the process of sundowning are still rather unspecified, but there are many contributing factors (Bedrosian & Nelson, 2013). Not only is sundowning associated with Alzheimer’s Disease, it is also associated with sleep disorders that are linked to aging (Evans & Grossberg, 2016). 10 to 25 percent of nursing home patients experience some sort of sundowning during the afternoon, with only 2.4 percent having diagnosed brain abnormalities (Evans & Grossberg, 2016). In 1993, colleagues discovered a seasonal effect in sundowning (Evans & Grossberg, 2016). Sundowning appears to be more experienced during the time of year where there is the shortest amount of daylight hours, such as winter (Evans & Grossberg, 2016). Sundowning is a descriptor, rather than an independent diagnosis although proposals of its addition to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) have been made. Its etiology is not well known and it is often confused with delirium (Lebert, Pasquier & Petit, 1996).Historical & Contemporary Perspectives Essay