Alzheimer's Disease Support Group
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia and characterized by progressive cognitive deterioration with declining activities of daily living and neuropsychiatric symptoms or behavioral changes. An early symptom is memory loss (amnesia), usually manifesting as minor forgetfulness that becomes pronounced with illness progression, with relative...
So both my maternal grandparents had alzheimers. I know this makes my mother at higher risk so maybe I watch her too closely, but it also means I have seen the signs before.
For several years now I have noticed what I consider early signs.
We are a military family and so relocate a lot. My mother came to live with us after my father died having never been to our house before. She
struggled with fear of leaving the house without someone with her. I tried to teach her landmarks like my son's high school, a huge building with 3000 students. Driving by a week later she wanted to know what that big
building was and insisted she had not seen it before. We stopped pushing for her to drive places after that.
5 years later she was here for my oldest's wedding and two days after she arrived she wanted to call her friend and tell him she had arrived safely. He had called her the day she arrived and they had talked for several minutes. I think she had spoken to him other times as well, but that one I am sure of. She argued with me saying he had not called and I mentioned several of the things she had told me about the conversation. She looked at me and asked if she was crazy.
She asked what she was to wear to the wedding once to twice each day. She said she was going down to her room to get her clothes out for tomorrow and would come back up and 15 minutes later say it again and go down the stairs again.
She came to my house twice last summer and stayed 4 days one time and a week another, but had no memory of what room she stayed in. She also lived with me for 3 months 5 years ago.
She does not interact much with people any more. Very little talking. I know she does not remember names. My middle son's wife the second time she met her she insisted she had never met her before.
We had 3 guests she had not met who were also staying at our house. They arrived before her. One the third day she wanted to know if two of them were boyfriend/girlfriend. We had a conversation with her present with the girl asking when they were going to get married and she talked about how it would be soon and the boy was shopping for a ring etc.
We showed up unexpectedly at her house once and found her desk and kitchen lined with post it notes with reminders of all kinds of things, from phones numbers to birthdates. The post it notes were all gone when we went again 6 months later.
This visit she became upset and snappish several times, telling us we don't tell her anything and complaining about loudly how she can't know what to do when no one tells her. Of course we had told her several times. We played a card game and she stated she did not want to play as she did not know how. 30 minutes later she slammed out the door saying she was being left out and did not fit in as we did not want her to play.
So what do I do? My oldest brother for a couple years saw no signs, but he lived in the same place for 20 years. He moved to a new town and mom came to visit and he immediately called me to say she was vacant and confused the whole visit. My other brother who has lived in the same place for many years sees nothing. He talked her into a memory test about 18months ago which she passed. They said slight memory loss, but nothing out of the ordinary for her age. He has pop quizzed her as well and sees nothing wrong.
Do I push more? Another test? Am I just imagining things? I know there are things to help prevent loosing what you have. I want to get her help early.
For several years now I have noticed what I consider early signs.
We are a military family and so relocate a lot. My mother came to live with us after my father died having never been to our house before. She
struggled with fear of leaving the house without someone with her. I tried to teach her landmarks like my son's high school, a huge building with 3000 students. Driving by a week later she wanted to know what that big
building was and insisted she had not seen it before. We stopped pushing for her to drive places after that.
5 years later she was here for my oldest's wedding and two days after she arrived she wanted to call her friend and tell him she had arrived safely. He had called her the day she arrived and they had talked for several minutes. I think she had spoken to him other times as well, but that one I am sure of. She argued with me saying he had not called and I mentioned several of the things she had told me about the conversation. She looked at me and asked if she was crazy.
She asked what she was to wear to the wedding once to twice each day. She said she was going down to her room to get her clothes out for tomorrow and would come back up and 15 minutes later say it again and go down the stairs again.
She came to my house twice last summer and stayed 4 days one time and a week another, but had no memory of what room she stayed in. She also lived with me for 3 months 5 years ago.
She does not interact much with people any more. Very little talking. I know she does not remember names. My middle son's wife the second time she met her she insisted she had never met her before.
We had 3 guests she had not met who were also staying at our house. They arrived before her. One the third day she wanted to know if two of them were boyfriend/girlfriend. We had a conversation with her present with the girl asking when they were going to get married and she talked about how it would be soon and the boy was shopping for a ring etc.
We showed up unexpectedly at her house once and found her desk and kitchen lined with post it notes with reminders of all kinds of things, from phones numbers to birthdates. The post it notes were all gone when we went again 6 months later.
This visit she became upset and snappish several times, telling us we don't tell her anything and complaining about loudly how she can't know what to do when no one tells her. Of course we had told her several times. We played a card game and she stated she did not want to play as she did not know how. 30 minutes later she slammed out the door saying she was being left out and did not fit in as we did not want her to play.
So what do I do? My oldest brother for a couple years saw no signs, but he lived in the same place for 20 years. He moved to a new town and mom came to visit and he immediately called me to say she was vacant and confused the whole visit. My other brother who has lived in the same place for many years sees nothing. He talked her into a memory test about 18months ago which she passed. They said slight memory loss, but nothing out of the ordinary for her age. He has pop quizzed her as well and sees nothing wrong.
Do I push more? Another test? Am I just imagining things? I know there are things to help prevent loosing what you have. I want to get her help early.
If she can't remember how to play a game that she has played before many times,that's a red flag. I know someone's mom who multiplied backwards for the doc and got all the right answers, The doc was ready to declare the daughters insane, until the mum said I have to go now, my husband is waiting for me in the car downstairs. He died 39 years ago.