Recently, a friend visiting from overseas called out of the blue moon. Super excited, I made a plan to meet. So we met and chatted about our life journeys. Eventually, she poured her heart out to me while sharing her mother’s Alzheimer’s ridden journey of the last few years. It was heart-wrenching to hear about the dedicated time she had to spend each year taking care of her mom due to the disease. It was the giving of hope to her mother which she found most difficult to do, given the severity of the ailment.
My friend told me in detail, how her extremely energetic and independent mom had started developing memory loss, personality changes, judgement errors and related symptoms a few years back. It took them almost a year to get it accurately diagnosed as Alzheimer’s disease. She also shared how, due to insufficient awareness, they were very puzzled and stressed for a major part of the journey.
Alzheimer disease affects the brain and the nervous system. The nerve cells start to degenerate. As it is a progressive disease, the memory deteriorates, making daily tasks difficult to handle. Amongst the many symptoms of Alzheimer’s, the most pronounced are changes in mood, behaviour, personality and the reduced ability to do things and recognize people even as beloved as the spouse or child.
Further, since the person affected with Alzheimer’s loses the ability to handle daily chores and tasks on their own, they become dependent on a caregiver. The family of an Alzheimer’s patient find it extremely challenging to manage as well. It can be strenuous, physically and mentally, for the person who is in a supporting role. In fact, people with advanced Alzheimer’s disease and worsened symptoms often need a care in specialized support facility.
Globally, at least 55 million people are believed to be living with Alzheimer’s disease. Another very startling fact is that someone in the US develops this disease every 65 seconds! What is worse is that by 2050, this time will come down to 33 seconds.
September 21st is marked as World Alzheimer’s Day. World Alzheimer’s Day creates awareness about the disease, educates people about its symptoms and encourages support.
You must discuss with doctors and do your own research as well to know as much as you can about this disease. It is important to remain aware and be able to support your loved one in all kinds of situations that arise due to Alzheimer’s. If you are the primary support and caregiver, it also becomes important for you to plan and organize activities well in advance.
World Alzheimer’s Day creates awareness about the Alzheimer’s disease, educates people about its symptoms and encourages support.
September 21st is marked as the World Alzheimer’s day.
Alzheimer disease affects the brain and nervous system. The Human’s nerve cells start to degenerate. As it is a progressive disease, the memory deteriorates, making daily tasks difficult to handle.
Amongst the many symptoms of Alzheimer, the most pronounced are changes in mood, behaviour, personality and the reduced ability to do things and recognize people as close as the spouse and child.
Comments