Thank you so much for taking the path you're on. This journey should never be taken alone. My Pastor taught me not to waste my pain. Use it to grow physically, emotionally, and spiritually- for yourself and others that come with and behind you. I commend your courage. You are doing it and sharing your legacy with all. God is blessing you to be a blessing.
Thank you for this list. I'm a 50 year old caring for my husband who is 67 and was diagnosed with fronto-temporal dementia about four years ago. I've seen him go from a college professor who ran marathons and was very musically gifted to someone who for the most part no longer comprehends what I am saying to him. I sometimes wonder if the adjustment has been harder for me and I've prayed and prayed for patience and to know the right thing to do when. Your thoughtful, beautifully written piece brought tears to my eyes and gave me some new insights that I've been needing. Thank you so much for sharing.
There is no cure - but this doesn't mean you cannot help yourself. NO Processed foods - or in limited amounts. Exercise feeds the brain. We have cut out 95% of the 'food' chemicals and my 96 yo DH is exercising again and he is actually turning himself around. Just yesterday when I was telling him something 'again' - he remembered and told me that he remembered me telling him that. And he's teasing me again. It's all about helping yourself.
My father was diagnosed Early Onset at the age of 82. When he passed at 88, there had been no progression. He ate the most balanced meals I have ever seen - and he fixed them all himself. Never give up.
Rick Phelps, very eloquently written. Some of the same challenges arise with other diseases too. I loved my Dad and always saw him as the same man I’d known my whole life. Life changes all of us as we go through it, but we’re still in there.
I am a caregiver for my mom (in law) who has moderate Alzheimer's. She obsesses over a specific thing or event for weeks at a time. It upsets her knowing she has asked about this same thing before but can't remember when or what the answer is. She writes notes about it to remind her to ask but throws the answer away. It's like her brain is wired that the answer is a square peg in a round hole, she can't accept it. It doesn't bother me, I just calmly answer the question again. I try to help her understand (if it's possible) that it's her brain that causes her to forget and she doesn't need to be embarrassed or upset about it, it's just the disease. This list of 8 things are all things that are things that apply to her disease and it's effect on her.
I really don't know where to start. I'm having a hard time reading these 8 things to know. And that's because I'm failing with most of them. I'm 67 and my wife, who has been diagnosed with dementia is 74. We met in 1998 at my work site, she was the cook on a lunch wagon. Two and a half months went by and I asked her to marry me. She was my first and only wife. I retired 5 years ago with lot's of plans of sharing my elder years with the love of my life. Do whatever we wanted. And we did for about 4 years. We didn't accompany each other on trips to the doctor, unless it was something that required one or the other to be present. I guess both of us were kind of private in that way. So I didn't find out about the diagnosis for awhile, not until after the car was totaled. Which was a couple of day's before I received the letter from my insurance co. explaining why they took my wife off of the policy. I guess the Dr. sent them a letter or the DMV or something. I was ignorant of all of this going on because my wife was hiding her mail from me. I worked hard for me to have a nice truck and her to have a nice car. Paid for. And they were. I figured the least bill's I had, the better off we would be. I was relieved she, my wife, nor the occupant's of the other car were uninjured. But the car was lost. It wasn't a week later and I went out to go somewhere and the battery was dead in my truck. Hey, I'm stuck. What to do? So I'm now paying payments again. You know stuff does happen. But if I knew about diagnosis and that the doctor saw her as unfit to drive. She wouldn't have been. And yet she doesn't have this disease. She came into the room I was in the other day with the TV remote in her hand. She was almost crying, she was so frustrated and said, "What's this"? I said it's the remote. She said she was trying to call her daughter but she didn't know why it wasn't working. But she still doesn't have Dementia. I'm guilty of not knowing and using these 8 things to know, because we argue constantly. I'm always frustrated because she never listens to a word I say. Well, she probably does. She just can't either retain it or process it. But me, as her caretaker, I guess, I don't know that. Unless I come here and read stuff like 8 thing's to know. But I still don't know, so I'm trying to learn and maybe we can salvage some of these elder years. I see scary in a couple of your 8 things to know, and I can only imagine. Then I think, if this happens to me, who will be there. That's also scary.
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8 Things People Living With Alzheimer’s Need You to Know
NO Processed foods - or in limited amounts.
Exercise feeds the brain.
We have cut out 95% of the 'food' chemicals and my 96 yo DH is exercising again and he is actually turning himself around. Just yesterday when I was telling him something 'again' - he remembered and told me that he remembered me telling him that.
And he's teasing me again. It's all about helping yourself.
My father was diagnosed Early Onset at the age of 82. When he passed at 88, there had been no progression. He ate the most balanced meals I have ever seen - and he fixed them all himself. Never give up.
Some of the same challenges arise with other diseases too.
I loved my Dad and always saw him as the same man I’d known my whole life. Life changes all of us as we go through it, but we’re still in there.
We didn't accompany each other on trips to the doctor, unless it was something that required one or the other to be present. I guess both of us were kind of private in that way. So I didn't find out about the diagnosis for awhile, not until after the car was totaled. Which was a couple of day's before I received the letter from my insurance co. explaining why they took my wife off of the policy. I guess the Dr. sent them a letter or the DMV or something. I was ignorant of all of this going on because my wife was hiding her mail from me.
I worked hard for me to have a nice truck and her to have a nice car. Paid for. And they were. I figured the least bill's I had, the better off we would be. I was relieved she, my wife, nor the occupant's of the other car were uninjured. But the car was lost. It wasn't a week later and I went out to go somewhere and the battery was dead in my truck. Hey, I'm stuck. What to do? So I'm now paying payments again. You know stuff does happen. But if I knew about diagnosis and that the doctor saw her as unfit to drive. She wouldn't have been. And yet she doesn't have this disease. She came into the room I was in the other day with the TV remote in her hand. She was almost crying, she was so frustrated and said, "What's this"? I said it's the remote. She said she was trying to call her daughter but she didn't know why it wasn't working. But she still doesn't have Dementia.
I'm guilty of not knowing and using these 8 things to know, because we argue constantly. I'm always frustrated because she never listens to a word I say. Well, she probably does. She just can't either retain it or process it. But me, as her caretaker, I guess, I don't know that. Unless I come here and read stuff like 8 thing's to know.
But I still don't know, so I'm trying to learn and maybe we can salvage some of these elder years. I see scary in a couple of your 8 things to know, and I can only imagine. Then I think, if this happens to me, who will be there. That's also scary.