Comments on: Alzheimer’s Disease is Brain Disorder

By: mario

mario — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 14:56:23 +0000

My mother had the disease. It is a death sentence for sure. It is a great case for euthanasia in my opinion. We had to spend almost her entire life savings to treat her in a nuring home at $7,000 a month. I told my wife if I get the disease we are getting a divorce and I am just going off somewhere to die. I am not giving my life savings to doctors in nurisng homes so they can buy boats and airplanes with it. That is how I feel about it. Money is a sacred commocity and needs to be spent on the living. Once a person has that disease it is time to let them go, unless of course you are rich and can easily afford the nursing home care.

That is how I feel about it after watching my mother die from it after a 7 year illness.

By: mary ann

mary ann — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 14:56:46 +0000

my father had alzheimer’s i took care of him 24 hrs a day every day till her passed at the age of 99 it got him in his 70′s he beat me almost every day when i was a child…… he didn’t know who i was when i cared for him………… but he would call me the nice lady that took ceare of him i bathed him dreesed him & fed him in the end ……i knew he cared fore me even if he didn’t know my name…… he liked me for myself not because i was his daughter.. but because he calld me the nice lady that took care of him
Mary Ann

By: Therese

Therese — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 11:35:58 +0000

To all, the best defense against Alzheimers is to get educated about the different types and symptome. I see a lot of the comments are mentioning other diseases that mimic Alzheimers. There are tests for Alzheimers to rule out this disease. I have ADHS and am on medication and I can identify with a lot of the symptoms of not only Alzheimers, but dememtia, also. There is a difference there, too. Just because you may have some dementia does not mean you are getting Alzheimers. The symptoms of MS mimic this disease, too. Please get the all the information you can and talk to health care professionals who have experience with Alzheimers and have had expeience working with residents and families. I believe we can think ourselves into this disease by not knowing what to look for and by hearing others’ comments about us ‘forgetting where we laid our keys.’ You alone can make a decision on your own health with information and trust in yourself about any symptoms you may have. Talk to others whom you can trust to give you a straight answer about your concerns. Dementia can be thwarted, also. You can change how you live your life and apply activities to enhance memory. My mom always forgot she put the cup of coffee in the microwave until she needed to use the microwave and found the cup. I do that also. It is a learned behavior. I saw her do it a million + times and I do it now. So what? I am a nurse of 15 years with extensive experience with those who have Alzheimer’s disease and I am 53. I was told by a doctor years ago, that if you remember you forgot then you are ok. It’s when you cannot remember you forgot that you should seek advice. Makes sense to me. Good luck to all and God Bless.

By: Connie

Connie — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 04:54:52 +0000

I went to a neurologist with alzheimers symptoms. He checked
me and sent me to a sleep clinic. I have sleep apnea. It mimics alzheimers symptoms. I am 59 now. My mother died from
alzheimers, so it is always on my mind.

By: Jayden Valentino

Jayden Valentino — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 06:15:16 +0000

I’m a documentary filmmaker and an I-Report correspondent for CNN. My grandmother suffers from Alzheimers … I feel your pain and have witnessed the horrible effects of this illness. Please share your stories with me … I am currently compiling stories of Alzheimers patients … who they “were” – before Alzheimers took them away. They’re stories deserve to be told.

JvBooking@aol.com
- Jayden Valentino
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1101678/

By: Deb

Deb — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 19:53:11 +0000

hello to all of you that are looking for answers or responded to the post of forgetting to close the tailgate on the SUV or the coffee in the microwave,Im hear to tell you it’s just normal forgetfulness.I my self have done this and Im only 39.Everyday I walk into the room to do or say something and forget what it was for.I find if I go back to where I had the thought such as Im in the bedroom and go to the bathroom to grab the basket to collect the dirty clothes around the house.I remember what I was doing.It is fustrating and I feel I waste alot of time retaking my steps.I hope this is helpful.It is gross when you go to make a cup of coffee and find that a day old coffee is sitting in the microwave.LOL

By: timmy

timmy — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 06:20:39 +0000

we know that most old people seem to get the,”you stole my stuff, you are keeping me hostage and I want to go home”, from our older loved ones. I think it is difficult for most to seperate the nornal problems from the alasimers issues. We should try to understand the diease and seperate it from being “just old”!

By: Robin

Robin — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 02:09:08 +0000

Hello to all you Angels out there caring for loved ones with Alzheimers.
My mother came to live with me last August after my Step-Dad fell and broke both of his arms. My mother whom is 88 started showing signs of this in 2003. I was told this may happen by her Cardiologist as she had Open Heart surgery in August of 2000 and did not regain consciousness for nearly five days. After many testings, it was confirmed that she had Dementia/ Alzheimers She has been taking Aricept and Namenda for several years but they don’t seem to have made any difference in fact at times I wonder if they are making her worse. She gets so confused and very angry at little things. She also is taking an antidepressant Lexapro but it too does not seem to help her out bursts of anger and I was told it would help keep her calm. I just lost my Husband on May 29th due to Cancer and I am not sure which of these dieases is worse to be a care giver to. They are both very Heart breaking. I pray daily that they will find a cure for both someday very soon.

By: Jessie

Jessie — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 02:07:22 +0000

To all of you who are caring for a loved one with this horrible disease, God Bless you! My heart goes out to each and everyone of you…and while it won’t mean much coming from a stranger, thank you. It takes a lot of courage, strength, and love to put your life on hold and commit to seeing your loved one through one of the most horrible diseases we have now.
I too know it’s extremely hard. I moved my children back to my Grandmother’s to help take care of her. I gave my husband the “option” to move with us, or see his family on weekends. Not very fair, very one way, but I had no choice. This woman had raised me, loved me unconditionally, and always been my rock, if I had put her in a nursing home, I would never have been able to live with the guilt. Medications could change her attitude so drastically, I have fought with doctors and nurses who, because they had a degree, thought they knew better than me….I stood my ground! She had a wonderful neurologist that supported me, and would always back me. I cannot imagine what things would have been like without his support.
She did not sleep at night either, it didn’t matter how much you occupied her during the day, she would yell all night. My children and I slept on pallets near her bed so I could calm and reassure her throughout the night. They slept with me because her screaming would wake them and they would be scared otherwise. I mention these things not for anyone to pity what we went through, but to show that children are resiliant….they are proud and glad that they were able to be with Nanna, even if she didn’t “act right” at times. I believe it strengthened them…I’m sure many would argue with that, but I think it helped teach them how do deal.
I was truly blessed by God to be able to care for her, work full time, raise two beautiful children, and keep my marriage. Not everyone can do this, not everyone should do this. Each person deals differently, but remember, they cannot help how they are, or how they act or react. That is still your loved one….just changed by a terrible, horrible disease.

By: JayGee

JayGee — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 20:40:49 +0000

My husband has slow Alzheimer’s – diagnoses several years ago, symptoms several years prior. I moved fairly close to family, found a wonder of a caregiver, and we ride a slow, slow descent into the unknown. We have no social life, and have little family contact (we can’t go to college football games, do an 80 mile round trip to a barbeque and beerbust, or just pick up and go out to places where the food is distasteful to my husband – shame on us). (Whoops!, sorry about that.)

I do little or nothing of any consequence, other than superintend – the Deity considered it amusing to disable me about 20 years ago. Or perhaps the Devil did it. but whomver left me most of my brain, so I’m ok.

By staying in familiar surroundings, with things to do if he chooses, little doable (or forgettable) chores, food he likes, neat pets of modest size, and excursions with one of the two caregivers. He forgets enough to not know his kids don’t visit, nor his grandkids.

God’s been good.

Love, luck, and sincere sympathy to all you in this struggle.