Alzheimer's Disease

[DramaQueenDiva]

The month of November is Alzheimer's Awareness Month. This is a cause that's very near and dear to my heart. Not only do I work with seniors as an Activity Director, I am also a Certified Dementia Practitioner and my grandmother had Alzheimer's Disease.

What does this have to do with Mind And Body? A lot! Alzheimer's is a term we use to describe various diseases that have common symptoms and it is terminal. Alzheimer's is the umbrella term to label all these diseases.

Alzheimer's affects your brain by literally killing off the connections to various parts of your brain. This can be scary for caregivers as the resident starts to forget who they are. We all have some form of memory loss, that's usually due to various causes outside of Alzheimer's. Things like forgetting your car keys are not Alzheimer's. It's when these memory lapses happen frequently over a period of time that may be an indication of Alzheimer's. Continuing on the car key example, for the Alzheimer's resident, it's no longer "Where are my car keys?" That becomes "How did I get here?"

There are physical changes as well as personality changes. Residents can become more aggressive and agitated. They can also lose coordination or forget how to move certain parts of their body. 

Other common symptoms include anxiety, hoarding, wondering, hallucinations, delusions, and sleep disturbances.

How would you react if all those changes were happening to you?

If anyone has any questions on the topic or would like to share their experiences, you can post them here or PM me if you don't feel comfortable sharing publicly. I'd be happy to help in any way I can.

[SunsetRunner]

@DramaQueenDiva - so nice of you to start this thread. You ask - How would I react if these changes were happening to me?  My question to you is how aware of these changes would I actually be?  A friend once described his mother (who had Alzheimers) as “watching and reacting to a different TV show than what the rest of us are .”  

I had two close experiences with a friend/relative with this cruel disease. Both were cat lovers. My friend’s mother was placed in a memory care home where pets were not allowed. I got her a realistic, stuffed cat that looked like her (long gone) kitty. She appeared to recognize the kitty and spent many hours with it in her lap petting it. 

With my husband’s aunt, family was able to find a memory care home that had a friendly cat. That cat bonded with Auntie and spent many seemingly happy hours in her lap. What is your experience with little things like this. @DramaQueenDiva ?  Do they really make a difference as I thought I observed? Or was it wishful thinking?  I’ve experience some temporary cognitive issues over the last few years that were attributed to serious illnesses. I told my husband and daughter that if I ever get too bad, get me a stuffed calico kitty and please, please, please …  make sure that soothing piano music is always being played in my room. It has always soothed me. 

Is anyone else willing to share their experiences? Or ask questions?

[DramaQueenDiva]

Although the mechanical cats do scare the living daylights out of me, they do help. For those that have no idea what I'm talking about, you can find them here . These cats breathe, open/close eyes, meow, wag their tails, and even paw you for attention. They're used to help calm residents that are experiencing anxiety or other difficult behaviors. A fair warning: do NOT tell them the cat is fake or let the batteries die. To them, the cat is REAL. The same goes for baby dolls or other stuffed animals they enjoy. 

There's also been evidence to suggest that they provide very similar benefits to Pet Therapy. I've had experience with both the mechanical and real pets, and I've seen first hand the calming effects they can have on ALZ residents.

As far as the resident's awareness, it really depends on which stage of the disease progression they're in. There's  six stages one goes through with ALZ:

1.) No Impairment- the resident is able to mask their disease

2.) Very Mild Decline- while they're still able to be fairly independent, the resident has more frequent memory lapses

3.) Mild Decline- the resident's memory loss starts to become more prominent and they can't hide the disease as easily. These lapses change from "Oh I forgot my keys" to "Where did I put my keys?"

4.) Moderate to Severe Decline- this is where the confusion starts to set in. The resident still has moments of clarity, but they start to become less frequent. The memory lapses tend to last longer and change from "Where did I put my keys?" to "How did I get here?" This is where the resident also starts to become more physically and verbally aggressive towards caregivers who disagree with them.

5.) Severe Decline- residents tend to lose track of dates and times

6.)Very Severe Decline-the final stage, the residents are on their way to passing away. 

It should be noted that everyone experiences some form of memory loss. This is usually due various causes that have nothing to do with ALZ, such as fatigue, distractions, or not thinking clearly. This is NOT ALZ, ALZ happens when these memory lapses occur over a period of time. 

I hope that answers your question, and if anyone else has questions, I would love to help! You're welcome to write them here if you feel comfortable or PM me if you don't want to ask them publicly.

[SunsetRunner]

Thanks for the information, @DramaQueenDiva . As for the cat, it was just a stuffed animal. We did not say it was real … or not real. Just that we had something for her. As you said, it would have been heartbreaking if it had “died.” 

[ebble]

IMO alzheimer's is essentially a lifestyle disease.  BigPharma has no real answers.  Do some research...change your diet...etc.

Generally people tend to have more cognitive issues as they age...but there are preventative measures you can take...to reduce cognitive decline.

[DramaQueenDiva]

You're partially correct @ebble.  I know this because I work in the field as a Dementia Practitioner.  Yes, there is limited research on the benefits of medications, but it's not as easy as you make it seem.  Non-medical interventions (such as the ones I specialize in) can only do so much.  Yes, there are preventative measures you can take to slow the progression of the disease. Sometimes it's genetic, as ALZ Disease tends to run in families (like mine), sometimes it's brought on by lifestyle choices (as you mentioned), and sometimes it's other outside factors as well.

[ebble]

I also work in the field...trying to slow my own cognitive decline.  🙂   Not that I've been diagnosed...yet...but my take on it is that some decline is probably inevitable...thus my interest in preventative measures.

Regardless of the probable "causes" of cognitive decline...genetic...familial "causes"...there are some measures a person can take to slow the decline. 

https://primehealthdenver.com/bredesen-protocol/

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/mind-diet

https://easyhealthoptions.com/even-in-brains-riddled-by-alzheimers-exercise-helps-memory/

https://nutritionfacts.org/video/how-to-prevent-alzheimers-with-diet/

https://easyhealthoptions.com/take-10-years-off-your-brain-age-with-resveratrol/

Some or many in the health field are stuck in the BigPharma mode...where if the drug companies can't find a way to profit...there is nothing to be done.  Oh...they can profit...pushing rather ineffective drugs to the gullible.

I derive from a family that has the typical American (?) approach to health...just live your life...collect some $ for retirement...let the doctors fix what goes wrong.

I try to use preventative measures.  My main take on the issue...is don't wait...start to work on preventive stuff while you still can..any decline is a function of what you do vs time???  Younger people are pretty busy doing their own thing...it's only when you get older and see the brick wall up ahead...that you start to pay attention?  Some don't and are surprised?

My mother...soon to be 98...is pretty far down the road.  She can carry on a conversation on the phone as long as it involves platitudes and so forth...sarcasm/jokes just confuse her.  She tries to pretend she's OK which is likely a good thing. 

I'm not so sure I'm interested in making it to 98 myself.

The average person who is past 65 has about a 50% chance to live to 85...if I have my stats correct.  The grim reaper waits for us all....with his big **** eating grin...

What are your chances to avoid MCI and alzheimer's?

https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/968462

I'd guess that considering various factors that I have maybe a 30% chance of developing MCI or worse over the next 10 years....if I live that long.   😉

Aging is a really wonderful experience.  Just trying to be positive....

[ebble]

I visited with my mother and her friend a woman in a nursing home who had one of the mechanical cats.  She was able to get around well and was still pretty much cognitively "there".  But it had run it's batteries down...so I got the bright idea of installing new ones.  So I get out my trusty pocket knife and proceed to operate...batteries are in the stomach.  At any rate...got it going and she more or less announced that she didn't like it that much cause it drew all the attention from her. 

[LouisShaman]

That’s a terrible disease. My granny had it, too, and it was hard for me to see her suffering. She was always a good cook, and she kept her house clean all the time. however, after this disease, her house started looking like a huge mess. We couldn’t leave her alone and decided to take them to our house. It was okay if she didn’t try to help and ge offended if we declined her offers. Then I had to return to work and couldn’t care about her. Moreover, she was even a bit dangerous, and I was scared for my kids. So I found the best senior living option that could provie, and now she has decent conditions and constant care

[LlancaAranda]

Awful disease... But it can be predicted with the help of correct way of life