Alzheimer's Dementia Quotes

To care for those who once cared for us is one of the highest honors.

Affirmations are our mental vitamins, providing the supplementary positive thoughts we need to balance the barrage of negative events and thoughts we experience daily.

Promise me that if I ever get Alzheimer’s or dementia, and I don’t remember anyone that you’ll visit me every day and read to me like Noah read to Allie.

Caregiving often calls us to lean into love we didn't know possible.

In the heart or every caregiver is a knowing that we are all connected. As I do for you, I do for me.

I love you but I got to love me more.

The power of intuitive understanding will protect you from harm until the end of your days.

Age isn't stealing from my grandmother; it's slowly unwinding her.

Many of us follow the commandment 'Love One Another.' When it relates to caregiving, we must love one another with boundaries. We must acknowledge that we are included in the 'Love One Another.

Thin, I think, that fabric between realities. Maybe minds aren't lost. Maybe they just slip through and find a different place to wander.

Dementia: Is it more painful to forget, or to be forgotten?

A mom’s hug lasts long after she lets go. ~Author Unknown

Of all the things to lose, to lose one's mind? Let them take a leg or a lung; let them take anything before they take that. Before you become "poor Rosemary" or "poor Frank," catching the last glimpses of the sun and seeing them for what they were. Before there were no more trips, no more games, no more Murder Clubs. Before there was no more you.

She almost thought she'd said the words aloud, but she hadn't. They remained trapped in her head, but not because they were barricaded by plaques and tangles. She just couldn't say them aloud

Her ability to use language, that thing that most separates humans from animals, was leaving her, and she was feeling less and less human as it departed. She's said a tearful good-bye to okay some time ago.

Not all activities are equal in this regard. Those that involve genuine concentration—studying a musical instrument, playing board games, reading, and dancing—are associated with a lower risk for dementia. Dancing, which requires learning new moves, is both physically and mentally challenging and requires much concentration. Less intense activities, such as bowling, babysitting, and golfing, are not associated with a reduced incidence of Alzheimer’s. (254)

Never give up hope! If you do, you be dead already.

A dementia-friendly society is not yet in reach.

You only know yourself because of your memories.

Never give up hope. If you do, you'll be dead already.--Dementia Patient, Rose from The Inspired Caregiver

Someday, I suppose I’ll give up, and sit in the rocking chair. But I’ll probably be rocking fast, because I don’t know what I’ll do without a job.

So about an hour later we are in the taxi shooting along empty country roads towards town. The April light is clear as an alarm. As we pass them it gives a sudden sense of every object existing in space on its own shadow. I wish I could carry this clarity with me into the hospital where distinctions tend to flatten and coalesce. I wish I had been nicer to him before he got crazy. These are my two wishes.

I am daily learning To be the reluctant guardian of your memories There was light in those eyes; I miss that

My caregiver mantra is to remember 'The only control you have is over the changes you choose to make.

Offering care means being a companion, not a superior. It doesn’t matter whether the person we are caring for is experiencing cancer, the flu, dementia, or grief. If you are a doctor or surgeon, your expertise and knowledge comes from a superior position. But when our role is to be providers of care, we should be there as equals.

I couldn’t find my car, not because I had a horrible memory, amnesia, dementia, or Alzheimer’s. Temporarily losing my car had absolutely nothing to do with my memory. I couldn’t find my car, because I never paid attention to where I had parked it in the first place.

And sometimes when she does remember, she calls me her little angel and she knows where she is and everything is all right for a second or a minute and then we cry; she for the life that she lost I for the woman I only know about through the stories of her children.

I had grown up thinking of life as a series of linear decisions that if made properly would land me on some distant safe shore where I would finally enjoy the fruits of my labor. Now that I was getting a glimpse of that shore I was struck by the inanity of such an equation. My mother was never going to get another chance to do anything else. She did not have the capacity for regrets, nor was she even able to enjoy the comfort of nostalgia or fond memories--her mind had leaked away too imperceptibly to allow for the clarity to look back on her life and wish she had done things differently. As I continued to worry over what sort of future I was setting myself up for, she seemed a painful cautionary tale that life was not a savings plan, accrued now for enjoyment later. I was alive now. My responsibility was to live now as fully as possible.

Never give up hope. If you do, you'll be dead already.-- Dementia Patient Rose in The Inspired Caregiver

Be like a duck . . . keep calm and unruffled on the surface but paddle like the devil underneath. —Unknown

You will never experience personal growth, if you fear taking chances. And, you will never become successful, if you operate without integrity.

Caregiving will never be one-size-fits-all.

While no one can change the outcome of dementia or Alzheimer's, with the right support you can change the journey.

Was the dementia of old age a blessing in disguise? No more thoughts. No more damage inflicted. No more memories of damage survived.

Holding hands, hugging, or just sitting companionably together is an important way to continue to communicate.

Even though you can't remember me, I promise I will remember the real you.

Butterfly Kisses Aged imperfections stitched upon my face years and years of wisdom earned by His holy grace. Quiet solitude in a humble home all the family scattered now like nomads do they roam. Then a gift sent from above a memory pure and tangible wrapped in innocence and unquestioning love. A butterfly kiss lands gently upon my cheek from an unseen child a kiss most sweet. Heaven grants grace and tears follow as youth revisits this empty hollow.

Een geboorte of een huwelijk mag dan een belangrijke gebeurtenis zijn, maar het garandeert geen plaats in het geheugen.' De hersens, een zeef. 'Knoop dat in uw oren: niets is zeker. Zeker is niets.

Overstimulation of IGF-1-signaling pathways in the brain due to milk consumption could thus accelerate the onset of neurodegenerative disease. IGF-1 passes the blood-brain barrier and reaches the neurons in the brain.

I am a wife, mother, and friend, and soon to be grandmother, I still feel, understand, and am worthy of the love and joy in those relationships. I am still an active participant in society. My brain no longer works well, but I use my ears for unconditional listening, my shoulders for crying on, and my arms for hugging others with dementia. Through an early stage support group...by talking to you today, I am helping others with dementia live better with dementia. I am not someone dying. I am someone living with Alzheimer's. I want to do that as well as I possibly can.

Dear Stephen,’ he begins. ‘This is a difficult letter to write, but I know it will be a great deal more difficult to read. I will come straight to it. I believe you are in the early stages of dementia, possibly Alzheimer’s.’ Elizabeth can hear her heart beating through her chest. Who on earth has chosen to shatter their privacy this way? Who even knows? Her friends? Has one of them written? They wouldn’t dare, not without asking. Not Ibrahim, surely? He might dare. ‘I am not an expert, but it is something I have been looking into. You are forgetting things, and you are getting confused. I know full well what you will say – “But I’ve always forgotten things. I’ve always been confused!” – and you are right, of course, but this, Stephen, is of a different order. Something is not right with you, and everything I read points in just one direction.’ ‘Stephen,’ says Elizabeth, but he gently gestures for hush. ‘You must also know that dementia points in just one direction. Once you start to descend the slope, and please believe me when I say you have started, there is no return. There may be footholds here and there, there may be ledges on which to rest, and the view may still be beautiful from time to time, but you will not clamber back up.’ ‘Stephen, who wrote you this letter?’ Elizabeth asks. Stephen holds up a finger, asking her to be patient a few moments more. Elizabeth’s fury is decreasing. The letter is something she should have written to him herself. This should not have been left to a stranger. Stephen starts

Dementia isn’t the only place that memories are found to be flawed—people find out they can’t rely on their memories every day. People blindsided in relationships. People who find out their truth is a lie. People pulled from trauma. People awakened, as in Anna and Eve. I wondered: If you can’t use memories to steer your life, what can you use? I didn’t know. It was why I had to write this book.

What made Olive the saddest about the Gardners was that everyone wanted to be enshrined in someone’s memory. It was the only way of living on after death, really: in the minds of loved ones. Memories were the only things that made aging bearable, a way of reverting to better, simpler days.

The color black has also been found to decrease memory performance in a number of studies. Other research by the University of British Columbia, on the other hand, showed that red boosted memory by as much as 31% more than even blue, a color that has been known to boost cognitive performance.

I believe that most caregivers find that they inherit a situation where they just kind of move into caregiving. It's not a conscious decision for most caregivers, and they are ultimately left with the responsibility of working while still trying to be the caregiver, the provider, and the nurturer.- Sharon Law Tucker

Even though people experiencing dementia become unable to recount what has just happened, they still go through the experience—even without recall. The psychological present lasts about three seconds. We experience the present even when we have dementia. The emotional pain caused by callous treatment or unkind talk occurs during that period. The moods and actions of people with dementia are expressions of what they have experienced, whether they can still use language and recall, or not.

Then there was the Trumpiness of it all. A candidate just didn’t get a whole lot out of debating Trump. Even if you were beating his ass, you would lose part of your soul in that debate. Trump was such a pathological liar that it was hard for anyone to maintain the nature of what they imagined themselves to be. Trump always took you down with him.

Sometimes, Sprout, the best way to move someone isn't to push them, but to hold their hand and walk with them.

Everything is in the process of being forgotten. But who we are—who we have been in mood, in personality, in character—persists much longer

People who have dementia need to have structure and routine every day, in order to get a better day.

Age On Purpose. Be intentional in your journey. You define aging. Don't allow aging to define you. It renders helplessness.

We’ve been led to believe that whether we get Alzheimer’s or senile dementia is up to either genetics or the luck of the draw, but that’s just not true.

Is there anything worse than not to be known for who you are? Maybe not knowing who you are.

In this journey, it wasn’t her forgetting that broke me. It was the glimpses of her remembering.

The dominant narrative is a horror story. People with Alzheimer's are perceived as zombies, bodies without minds, waiting for valiant researchers to find a cure. For Alice and me, the story was different. Alzheimer's was a time of healing and magic. Of course, there is loss with dementia, but what matters is how we approach our losses and our gains. Reframing dementia as a different way of being, as a window into another reality, lets people living in that state be our teachers — useful, true humans who contribute to our collective good, instead of scary zombies.

Many caregivers share that they often feel alone, isolated, and unappreciated. Mindfulness can offer renewed hope for finding support and value for your role as a caregiver…It is an approach that everyone can use. It can help slow you down some so you can make the best possible decisions for your care recipient. It also helps bring more balance and ease while navigating the caregiving journey.

Senility is best described in the old tongue, duine le Dia, for in that phrase is a kinder, more understanding view of the condition. Its literal meaning is “a person of God,” for only the person’s maker can now understand him.

I should also add something about weight here, because we all know that there’s often a relationship between weight and risk for diabetes. If the risk for Alzheimer’s disease goes up with metabolic disorders, then it makes sense that the risk also rises with unhealthy weight gain that has metabolic consequences. The science now speaks to this fact. Carrying extra weight around the abdomen has been shown to be particularly harmful to the brain. One study that garnered lots of media attention looked at over six thousand individuals aged forty to forty-five and measured the size of their bellies between 1964 and 1973.11 A few decades later, they were evaluated to see who had developed dementia and how that related to their waist size at the start of the study. The correlation between risk of dementia and thicker midsections twenty-seven years earlier was remarkable: Those with the highest level of abdominal fat had an increased risk of dementia of almost three-fold in comparison to those with the lowest abdominal weight. There is plenty of evidence that managing your weight now will go a long way toward preventing brain decline later.

Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, memory loss, and neurological diseases such as Parkinson’s and ALS can all be prevented by fruit. That’s because not only does fruit prevent these diseases, it prevents oxidation—which is the process that ages us. It

As the dementia progresses and the person develops trouble with coordination and language, it is easy to forget his need to experience pleasant things and to enjoy himself. Never overlook the importance of hand holding, touching, hugging, and loving.

Observe a pomegranate - a tough shell protects the most delicious, delicate layered and beautiful jewel-like seeds that glow in the sunlight. But when the pomegranate falls to the ground, it will never be the same again, much like Alzheimer's and Dementia.

In 2022, a study published in the journal Neurology looked at data from over 72,000 people.30 Increasing intake of UPF by 10 per cent was associated with a 25 per cent increase in the risk of dementia and a 14 per cent increase in the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

In her scorching memoir, Keeper, about the two years she lived with her mother-in-law and her rapidly worsening Alzheimer's disease, Andrea Gillies asks, 'What it is that dementia takes away?' And she answers herself: 'Everything; every last thing we reassure ourselves that nothing could take away from us.

Diane Gonclaves DeLuna and her mother, Mary for whom my heroine is named for. Diane and I met on Facebook, but we soon learned we have one thing (besides romance novels) in common. Her mother suffers from Alzheimer’s and min suffered from Dementia. Both of us wish we only had the love of romances in common.   Jane

At the other end of life are elders with severe dementia. The final stage of Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases is marked by extreme apathy and exhaustion. Individuals cease speaking, gesturing, and even swallowing. Has their conscious mind permanently left its abode, a shrunken brain full of neurofibrillary tangles and amyloid plaques?

Does she know she is not well? Does she know how she was before? Does she remember her past? Then I realized "what about us", our 43 years of marriage, does she remember that past? She recognizes me well but how far back? Did our marriage begin in 1979 or 2017 when she was diagnosed? I wasn't sure where I was in her memory, her friend or her husband.

BIDEN: “Look, folks,” the president told the adoring crowd after his wife handed him the microphone, “you know, there, uh — I shouldn’t say this, but my brother always uses lines from movies. There was a famous movie by John Wayne, and— and he’s working for the, uh, the Northern military, trying to get the Apaches back on the reservation, and they were lying like hell to him. And they’re all sitting on a bluff, and John Wayne was sitting with two Indian — they were, they were tr — Apaches. And one of them looked at John Wayne and said, ‘These guys are nothing but lying, dog-faced pony soldiers.’ ” The crowd roared and laughed. “Except, Trump’s just a liar,” Biden added. No such line was ever said in any John Wayne movie.

Every woman I'd ever known had two sets of memories: the one they wanted to remember and the one their heart wouldn't let them forget. The first kind were chosen, mostly positive and personality building, but the second would live on forever, despite age and fatigue and life-stealing diseases like dementia and Alzheimer's. Coded on the heart like a hard drive, the feelings never vanished.

When Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act in 1935, old age was defined as sixty-five years, yet estimated life expectancy in the United States at the time was sixty-one years for males and sixty-four years for females.62 A senior citizen today, however, can expect to live eighteen to twenty years longer. The downside is that he or she also should expect to die more slowly. The two most common causes of death in 1935 America were respiratory diseases (pneumonia and influenza) and infectious diarrhea, both of which kill rapidly. In contrast, the two most common causes of death in 2007 America were heart disease and cancer (each accounted for about 25 percent of total deaths). Some heart attack victims die within minutes or hours, but most elderly people with heart disease survive for years while coping with complications such as high blood pressure, congestive heart failure, general weakness, and peripheral vascular disease. Many cancer patients also remain alive for several years following their diagnosis because of chemo-therapy, radiation, surgery, and other treatments. In addition, many of the other leading causes of death today are chronic illnesses such as asthma, Alzheimer’s, type 2 diabetes, and kidney disease, and there has been an upsurge in the occurrence of nonfatal but chronic illnesses such as osteoarthritis, gout, dementia, and hearing loss.63 Altogether, the growing prevalence of chronic illness among middle-aged and elderly individuals is contributing to a health-care crisis because the children born during the post–World War II baby boom are now entering old age, and an unprecedented percentage of them are suffering from lingering, disabling, and costly diseases. The term epidemiologists coined for this phenomenon is the “extension of morbidity.

The Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay diet—or MIND diet, for short—was specially designed to improve brain health. Recent well-done studies have found that sticking to the MIND diet helps people avoid mental decline and remain cognitively healthy. One study even showed that people who stuck to the MIND diet cut their risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease in half. That’s extraordinary. And since no drug has yet been developed to prevent dementia, it’s your only move.

When a fine old carpet is eaten by mice, the colors and patterns of what's left behind do not change,' wrote my neighbor and friend, the poet Jane Hirschfield, after she visited an old friend suffering from Alzheimer's disease in a nursing home. And so it was with my father. His mind did not melt evenly into undistinguishable lumps, like a dissolving sand castle. It was ravaged selectively, like Tintern Abbey, the Cistercian monastery in northern Wales suppressed in 1531 by King Henry VIII in his split with the Church of Rome. Tintern was turned over to a nobleman, its stained-glass windows smashed, its roof tiles taken up and relaid in village houses. Holy artifacts were sold to passing tourists. Religious statues turned up in nearby gardens. At least one interior wall was dismantled to build a pigsty. I've seen photographs of the remains that inspired Wordsworth: a Gothic skeleton, soaring and roofless, in a green hilly landscape. Grass grows in the transept. The vanished roof lets in light. The delicate stone tracery of its slim, arched quatrefoil windows opens onto green pastures where black-and-white cows graze. Its shape is beautiful, formal, and mysterious. After he developed dementia, my father was no longer useful to anybody. But in the shelter of his broken walls, my mother learned to balance her checkbook, and my heart melted and opened. Never would I wish upon my father the misery of his final years. But he was sacred in his ruin, and I took from it the shards that still sustain me.

An American “epidemic of loneliness,” it’s being called, in research papers, the press, even on an official U.S. government website. Two in five Americans are unhappy with the relationships they do have. One in five Americans feel lonely and socially isolated. Loneliness, these researchers warn, is as lethal as smoking 15 cigarettes a day; can lead to suicide, Alzheimer’s disease, and other dementias; messes with our immune and cardiovascular systems, and more. Loneliness, in other words, is killing us. So every night, like a bedtime prayer, I open my apps and swipe.

One of the key reasons that rates of dementia have fallen sharply since the 1970s is the advent of improved treatments for heart ailments. What’s good for the heart is actually very good for the brain. The steps you take to keep your heart arteries unclogged also keep brain arteries open. Cholesterol-lowering drugs have dramatically reduced coronary artery disease and are effective even in people who live sedentary lifestyles and eat foods that aren’t “heart healthy.” Statins, prescribed to lower cholesterol, have lately been shown to lower the risk of Alzheimer’s disease in most people.

Your lifetime risk for general dementia is literally cut in half if you participate in physical activity. Aerobic exercise seems to be the key. With Alzheimer’s, the effect is even greater: Such exercise reduces your odds of getting the disease by more than 60 percent. How much exercise? Once again, a little goes a long way. The researchers showed you have to participate in some form of exercise just twice a week to get the benefit. Bump it up to a 20-minute walk each day, and you can cut your risk of having a stroke—one of the leading causes of mental disability in the elderly—by 57 percent.

How often are people told they’ve brought a condition like depression upon themselves? It’s all part of mercury’s blame-the-victim game. Those depressive symptoms are the mercury speaking for the patient without her or his consent. Sometimes mercury moves past the hostage phase and takes someone out, resulting in death by Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, dementia, or stroke. It’s that serious. Mercury has injured or killed well over a billion people. No one likes Alzheimer’s; it’s a frightening, terrible disease. Yet it’s rapidly becoming common—and it’s 100 percent mercury-caused. You heard that here first: Mercury is 100 percent responsible for Alzheimer’s disease. You will never in your lifetime hear the truth about that anywhere else.

Wandering has long been seen as part of the pathology of dementia. Doctors, carers, and relatives often try to stop patients from venturing out alone, out of concern they will injure themselves, or won’t remember the way back. When a person without dementia goes for a walk, it is called going for a stroll, getting some fresh air, or exercising, anthropologist Maggie Graham observes in her recent paper. When a person with dementia goes for a walk beyond prescribed parameters, it is typically called wandering, exit-seeking, or elopement. Yet wandering may not be so much a part of the disease as a therapeutic response to it. Even though dementia and Alzheimer’s in particular can cause severe disorientation, Graham says the desire to walk should be desire to be alive and to grow, as opposed to as a product of disease and deterioration. Many in the care profession share her view. The Alzheimer’s Society, the UK’s biggest dementia supportive research charity, considers wandering an unhelpful description, because it suggests aimlessness, whereas the walking often has a purpose. The charity lists several possible reasons why a person might feel compelled to move. They may be continuing the habit of a lifetime; they may be bored, restless, or agitated; they may be searching for a place or a person from their past that they believe to be close by; or maybe they started with a goal in mind, forgot about it, and just kept going. It is also possible that they are walking to stay alive. Sat in a chair in a room they don’t recognise, with a past they can’t access, it can be a struggle to know who they are. But when they move they are once again wayfinders, engaging in one of the oldest human endeavours, and anything is possible.

GET MOVING As stated in the 2018 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, research has shown a strong association between increased physical activity and a reduced risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer’s disease later in life, as well as general improvements in cognition. Exercise helps reduce inflammation, increase chemicals in the brain that boost mood and processing, increase blood flow, and improve oxygen delivery to the brain.

are we more caring of vulnerable older adults than we are of the young? What would we think of ourselves as a society if our streets and prisons were filled with old people suffering the terrors and indignities of untreated dementia? It may be that we see it as a question of effective treatments, which is ironic, as there are no truly effective treatments for Alzheimer’s disease, but there are for schizophrenia.

The “grandchild test” is one way to decide whether a person should still be driving. If you would not let a person drive your child or grandchild, then that person should not be driving.

Switching to a plant-based diet can cut cadmium (and lead) levels in half within just three months, and lower mercury levels by 20 percent, as measured in hair samples, but the heavy metal levels bounce back when an omnivorous diet is resumed.5492 Whether this helps account for the data showing two to three times lower dementia rates in vegetarians5493 is unclear. Although blood levels of mercury are correlated with Alzheimer’s risk, brain mercury levels, assessed on autopsy, do not correlate with brain pathology.

They're wondering if I'm riding into the Kingdom of Dementia on the Alzheimer's Express

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The Eviction by Stewart Stafford The mind's paper vessel crumples Sodden with learning and memory Ne'er to sail waves of reminiscence A living statue, hewn by sculptor Time. The physician nor the shaman console Self-pitying sobs in the moaning wind Brought down by jackals in the dunes The skull's tenant but a daily squatter Nostalgic waves batter alien shores Déjà vu of the blood and the collegial A stranger's reflection in misting eyes A sandcastle sacked to the four winds © Stewart Stafford, 2024. All rights reserved

My mother is in a home for people with dementia. She’s stuck in the past. The caregivers, of course, don’t know what a wonderful and exciting life she had before the Alzheimer’s. I put a large photo of Mother in her youth on her apartment door. The nurse and the helpers responded so favorably that I hoped to do more along the same line.

You may have heard of this gene, which is called APOE, because of its known effect on Alzheimer’s disease risk. It codes for a protein called APOE (apolipoprotein E) that is involved in cholesterol transport and processing, and it has three variants: e2, e3, and e4. Of these, e3 is the most common by far, but having one or two copies of the e4 variant seems to multiply one’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease by a factor of between two and twelve. This is why I test all my patients for their APOE genotype, as we’ll discuss in chapter 9. The e2 variant of APOE, on the other hand, seems to protect its carriers against dementia—and it also turns out to be very highly associated with longevity. According to a large 2019 meta-analysis of seven separate longevity studies, with a total of nearly thirty thousand participants, people who carried at least one copy of APOE e2 (and no e4) were about 30 percent more likely to reach extreme old age (defined as ninety-seven for men, one hundred for women) than people with the standard e3/e3 combination. Meanwhile, those with two copies of e4, one from each parent, were 81 percent less likely to live that long, according to the analysis. That’s a pretty big swing.

My heart has been in turmoil for years over Mom’s decline into dementia, but reading her words and hearing first-hand how she struggled makes my heart ache for her. I wish I could have eased her fears, helped her more than I did. Mostly, at the beginning, before I knew what was going on, I was frustrated with her. Now I understand, and I’m crying for her. Not myself for a change.

One of the things Mom’s journey with dementia has taught me is this: Life is in the small things, like the word “Amen”—a simple agreement, a yes to words prayed, and a statement claiming the promises of God. I’ve cried and begged for Mom not to have to go through this valley of loss, but it has come regardless. Now my one plea is that—in all that she has or will lose—she will never lose the love of God and her family. That is a truth worth saying “Amen” to.

can acknowledge and recognize your feelings—to yourself and to others—but you have a choice of when, where, and whether to express your feelings or to act on them.

The extraordinary success of a few internet companies has masked the embarrassing lack of major breakthroughs in other domains. There has been little improvement in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias, which affect nearly a third of all Americans over the age of eighty-five. There is still no cure for cancer. Life expectancy is declining in many parts of the world. So is quality of life. The Concorde made its last flight in 2003. Trains, planes, and automobiles move about as fast today as they did fifty years ago. Inflation-adjusted wages have stagnated for most Americans since the early 1960s—while the absolute size of paychecks has grown, purchasing power has not.5

Eyes, she had been told, are windows to the soul. Were his windows just misted over? Was Grandpa actually inside, standing behind the clouded glass, knocking back at her, calling out to her, from behind the fogged up frames? Or, instead of a window, was he underwater, trapped beneath a frozen lake, desperately trying to break through the layers of ice? Was he struggling, reaching out to her - her - a distant murky shadow from the surface out above? Was he gasping for air? Was he shouting for help? Scratching, clawing, banging from behind those misted windows...from where no one could hear him scream? Was Grandpa already broken? Had he already...drowned? Alexis shivered. No. I refuse to believe that. You're still in there and we are going to pull you back out.

These diseases include obesity, diabetes, heart disease, hypertension and stroke, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias, cavities, periodontal disease, appendicitis, ulcers, diverticulitis, gallstones, hemorrhoids, varicose veins, and constipation. These diseases and conditions are common in societies that eat Western diets and live modern lifestyles, and they’re uncommon, if not nonexistent, in societies that don’t.

My day has just gotten brighter. It should bother me—the fact that I must feed my mother like a toddler, but I’m determined to celebrate the things she can still do and no longer grieve so hard over what she can’t. I don’t care as much anymore if she can’t remember who we are, or even who she is, as long as she’s getting some enjoyment out of life. That’s what matters. We can do the remembering for her.

Thinking of that summer makes me remember the one before. I don’t recall what I had for lunch or what I watched on TV this afternoon, but I remember the day I tried to free myself from my sorrows under the weeping willow and the following summer among the flowers. Why is this so fresh and real of late? I don’t know. Maybe something I learned during that time will help prepare me for this journey into forgetfulness—the path I’m forced to walk on. Time is stealing my memories.

Since 2007, Alzheimer’s has been the sixth leading cause of death in the United States, and for people eighty and over, it’s now in fifth place for men, third for women. But even that isn’t quite right. For the most part, the causes of death that have led the CDC listings for the last century are broad categories of disorders such as “diseases of the heart,” “malignant neoplasms,” and “accidents” (unintentional injuries). As a result, many diseases fall under each heading, and the numbers of deaths counted are high. If we list heart attacks, heart failure, arrhythmias, and other cardiac conditions separately but cancer as a single entity, for example, heart diseases would not top the list; cancer would. But cancer would also drop lower down the list if we separated out the different types—listing breast, lung, skin, prostate, colon, blood, and each of the many others individually. Yet the CDC considers Alzheimer’s a separate disease on its own, rather than grouping the many dementias together. A more taxonomically consistent approach would be to have a dementia category that included vascular, Lewy body, frontotemporal, and all the other dementias. This matters because where a condition appears on this and other lists affects all aspects of medicine—from doctor training to money for research and departments within health systems, as well as the public’s imagination and our political and social priorities.

When someone you love has dementia, you too experience a form of anticipatory grief, but yours may extend over a longer period of time (for some, as long as 20 years) and be socially unrecognized and surrounded by uncertainty.

Former Chief Neurologist at Miriam Hospital, says Mellor's book "...offers a wealth of information for caregivers," while "the mixture of prose and poetry is refreshing.

I'm in awe of people who deal with Alzheimer's, because they have to deal with death 10 times over, year after year.

Recreation for Seniors: Enhancing Physical, Emotional & Social Well-Being Introduction: Recreation for senior citizens is a range of activities designed to promote physical, emotional, and social well-being. These activities focus on gentle exercise, cognitive stimulation, and fostering social connections. Some of these activities include yoga, arts & craft, gardening, music & dance, games and group outings. Importance: Recreation for senior citizens is important as it directly impacts their overall well-being in several ways: Physical Health: Engaging in physical activities, even low-impact ones, helps seniors maintain mobility, balance, strength, and cardiovascular health, reducing the risk of falls and chronic diseases. Mental Health: Recreational activities stimulate cognitive functions, which can help delay the onset of dementia and Alzheimer’s. They also improve memory, concentration, and problem-solving skills. Emotional Well-being: Participating in enjoyable activities helps reduce feelings of loneliness, depression, and anxiety, fostering a sense of belonging, purpose and joy in daily life. Conclusion: Recreation enriches seniors’ lives by offering opportunities for creativity, learning, and fun. It provides structure to their days and gives them something to look forward to, leading to a happier, more fulfilling lifestyle. Why Second Innings House: At Second Innings House, we know how important recreational activities are for seniors. We offer a range of fun and engaging programs that help our residents stay active, happy, and connected. Our activities aren’t just for our residents – other seniors from the community are welcome to join in through a simple subscription plan at our Senior Social Centre. Whether it’s yoga, arts, or social games, every activity is designed to improve well-being and create a sense of belonging. Join us at Second Innings House Senior Social Centre, where seniors can enjoy each day, stay connected, and live life to the fullest! Second Innings House, a home away from home!

There has been very good news lately that coconut oil can help Alzheimer's patients and patients with Parkinson's Disease, and patients that suffer from dementia. Alzheimer's patients brains cannot metabolize sugar the way it used to. Insulin helps the brain take up sugars from the blood, however insulin isn't very helpful. Generally, brain cells simply starve to death over time. Insulin stimulates brain cells to take sugar and metabolize it for energy. Insulin is also important

ahead and do this. If you will reach a point at which you will need Medicaid to pay for your loved one’s nursing-home care, Medicaid will require you to take some of the last remaining funds and preplan the funeral, to be sure that your loved one’s estate provides the funds for this final act.

Even though people experiencing dementia become unable to recount what has just happened, they still go through the experience—even without recall. The psychological present lasts about three seconds. We experience the present even when we have dementia. The emotional pain caused by callous treatment or unkind talk occurs during that period. The moods and actions of people with dementia are expressions of what they have experienced, whether they can still use language and recall, or not.

The most poignant time this happened was when I read a woman whose parents lived together in an assisted living facility. They were very ill for years, and the father took care of the mother, who had very bad dementia or Alzheimer’s--ironically, I can’t remember which. As these situations often go, it was the caretaker, the father, who died first, and the ill mother was still alive but unable to communicate very well. During the reading, I channeled the father, who said to his daughter, “I’ve been sitting at the end of your mother’s bed, calling her for weeks. But she doesn’t come. She’s so stubborn!” And then I heard the mother’s soul chime in, “I’m not stubborn! I’m just not ready to go!” The two went back and forth like this for a while, even though the mom wasn’t dead. But as they carried on, I could feel that the mother was growing increasingly at peace with the idea of crossing over. “Don’t worry,” the father’s soul finally assured his daughter. “When Mom passes, my soul will be there to greet her.” Do you know, four hours later, the mom died? Incredible.

In other words, Nathan had Bathsheba play on David’s faulty memory.  A common coping mechanism for people with dementia or Alzheimer’s like symptoms is to claim to remember things that others indicate that they should remember. 

For people who never consumed fish, the risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease during the four-year follow-up period was increased by 37 percent. In those individuals who consumed fish on a daily basis, risk for these diseases was reduced by 44 percent. Regular

There is now good dietary information for the two chief conditions referring to mental decline. On the modest side, there is a condition called "cognitive impairment" or "cognitive dysfunction." This condition describes the declining ability to remember and think as well as one once did. It represents a continuum of disease ranging from cases that only hint at declining abilities to those that are much more obvious and easily diagnosed. Then there are mental dysfunctions that become serious, even life threatening. These are called dementia, of which there are two main types: vascular dementia and Alzheimer's disease. Vascular dementia is primarily caused by multiple little strokes resulting from broken blood vessels in the brain. It is common for elderly people to have "silent" strokes in their later years. A stroke is considered silent if it goes undetected and undiagnosed. Each little stroke incapacitates part of the brain. The other type of dementia, Alzheimer's, occurs when a protein substance called beta-amyloid accumulates in critical areas of the brain as a plaque, rather like the cholesterol-laden plaque that builds up in cardiovascular diseases.

Four things about learning how to care for someone with dementia are important to realize. Firstly, most family carers are unfamiliar with the effects of dementia on people’s abilities, and people with dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease, or another disease, function in ways that most of us have never experienced.  Common sense does not help here. The carers have to learn how to understand new information about memory processes and how to cope with situations that are new to them. Secondly, don’t be too hard on yourself. If you realize you have made a mistake in the way you have been interacting with a person with dementia, learn from it, change what you are doing, but don’t hang onto the guilt. Forgive yourself. Know that every family goes through these painful experiences and feelings of being inadequate. Apologize to the person with dementia and then distract them with something fun. Thirdly, understand that each person with dementia is unique in the way they behave and how they understand what is happening. What has helped one family carer to cope may not help the next. Be patient with yourself and the person with dementia and never stop trying to find ways to help yourselves. Coping often means trying one thing after the other, and then using the approach that works for as long as it continues to work. Fourthly, scolding and arguing will not help them learn because they have lost most of their capacity to learn with their short-term memory. Scolding will, however, establish a procedural memory in their mind that interacting with you is always unpleasant.

You are not crazy, but you may be losing your mind.

Regular users of butter had no significant change in their risk for dementia or Alzheimer’s, but people who regularly consumed omega-3-rich oils, such as olive, flaxseed, and walnut

It has the ability to repair and regenerate neurons in your body, resulting in improved overall cognitive function, and lion’s mane has been known to reverse and mitigate the effects of such neurological diseases such as Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and dementia, among others.

Soy consumption has been clearly linked to a higher risk of vascular dementia, or Alzheimer’s disease, in men (White et al. 1996). The isoflavones of soy inhibit the enzyme conversion of testosterone to estradiol via the aromatase enzyme, which is necessary for male brain function and maintenance (Irvine et al. 1998).

Researchers have found that men with lower levels of testosterone are more than four times as likely to suffer from clinical depression, fatal heart attacks, and cancer when compared to other men their age with higher testosterone levels. They are also more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia, and have a far greater risk of dying prematurely from any cause (ranging from 88 to 250 percent higher, depending on the study).33

Today, the “mental workout” has gained great currency in the popular imagination. Brain gyms and memory boot camps are a growing fad, and brain training software was a $265 million industry in 2008, no doubt in part because of research that shows that older people who keep their minds active with crossword puzzles and chess can stave off Alzheimer’s and progressive dementia, but mostly because of the Baby Boomer generation’s intense insecurity about losing their marbles.

Tears water our eyes. "Remember," mom soothes, "like the beautiful blooms beneath the weeds, Nana is still Nana underneath.

The breakthrough study was done by Dr. Peter Elwood and a team from the Cochrane Institute of Primary Care and Public Health, Cardiff University, United Kingdom, and released in December 2013. For thirty years, these researchers followed 2,235 men living in Caerphilly, Wales, aged 45 to 59, and observed the impact of five activities on their health and on whether they developed dementia or cognitive decline, heart disease, cancer, or early death. The Cardiff study was meticulous, examining the men at intervals over the thirty years, and if they showed signs of cognitive decline or dementia, they were sent for detailed clinical assessments of high quality. It overcame study design problems from eleven previous studies (discussed in the endnotes). Results showed that if the men did four or five of the following behaviors, their risk for cognitive (mental) decline and dementia (including Alzheimer’s) fell by 60 percent:

Mistakes are always forgivable, if one has the courage to admit them. ~~ Bruce Lee

The suspicious mind believes more than it doubts.” ~~ Eric Hoffer

In everyone’s life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit.” ~~ Albert Schweitzer

Electric communication will never be a substitute for the face of someone who with their soul encourages another person to be brave and true.” ~~ Charles Dickens

The best and safest thing is to keep a balance in your life, acknowledge the great powers around us and in us. If you can do that, and live that way, you are really a wise man. ~~  Euripides

We gain strength, and courage, and confidence by each experience in which we really stop to look fear in the face... we must do that which we think we cannot.” ~~ Eleanor Roosevelt

There’s an old saying, “between you and me and the lamppost.” Well, leave the lamppost and the extra person out of this.

This brings us to the latest area being explored in connection with low-intensity lasers: Alzheimer’s disease, the commonest kind of dementia. The Alzheimer’s brain is also inflamed, and the mitochondria have difficulty functioning and show signs of aging called oxidative stress, which is a kind of “rusting” of the molecules. Lights, which improve general cellular functioning in the brain, can improve all three conditions—inflammation, mitochondrial problems, and oxidative stress.* The hallmark of Alzheimer’s is that the neurons build up excess misshapen proteins, called tau proteins and amyloid proteins, to form plaques that lead to degeneration.

WHY FAST: Brain function. A neuroscientist Mark Mattson found that intermittent fasting increases levels of a protein called brain-derived neurotrophic factor, or BDNF. This, in turn, stimulates new brain cells in the hippocampus, the region of the brain that is responsible for memory. (Shrinking of the hippocampus has been linked to dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.) Increases mood. The protein called BDNF that helps improve memory also suppresses anxiety and elevates mood. Mattson showed this to be true in a study of rats. He injected BDNF into their brains, and it had the same effect as a regular antidepressant. Increases the effectiveness of insulin, the hormone that affects our ability to process sugar and break down fat. Reduces blood pressure. As your insulin level increases, so does your blood pressure. Insulin stores magnesium, but if your insulin receptors are blunted and your cells grow resistant to insulin, you can’t store magnesium; it ends up passing out of your body through urination. Magnesium in your cells relaxes muscles. If your magnesium level is too low, your blood vessels will constrict rather than relax, which will raise your blood pressure and decrease your energy level. Reduces triglycerides. Insulin upregulates LPL on fat tissue and inhibits activation on muscle cells. On the other hand, glucagon upregulates LPL on muscle and cardiac tissue, while inhibiting the activation of fat. Weight loss. You burn fat, rather than sugar, in a fasted state.

Alzheimer's disease occurs in the people over the age of 65 which is 60% of the world’s approximately 24 million dementias patients. There are 2% of people are 65 & 70 year old, also 3% of people are under the age of 75 and 6% among 85 year old people.

In all the scientific efforts to find magic pills for fighting off dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, only regular, aerobic exercise and active mental engagement show any measurable results. Rather

Memory loss, dementia and Alzheimer's disease are becoming quite pervasive in our society. BeeHive Assisted Living Homes of Rio Rancho #1 have all heard about it on the news, read about it in magazines and talked with friends that are dealing with it. But, what happens when it starts to affect you in a more personal way. Finally, remember that whatever the future holds, you've done the best you can for your loved one. Rest in the knowledge that your memory care in Rio Rancho during this process has made a positive impact on the quality of life that they have and enjoy the time that you have with them.

How do I connect with my wife and get her to connect with me? This is always a constant desperation on my part especially because she doesn't speak. I am always afraid she will stop connecting with me, especially when I get that blank look, that daze into no man's land. That is the day I am trying to avoid. Everyday, every moment I can, I try to create an opportunity to “connect” to avoid her shutdown.

The real scary moment for me is when she wakes up in the morning and I greet her, she stares at me as if she doesn't recognize me. There is a gaze and no "connection" which really scares me. I ask her "do you want a big kiss or small one" and she sometimes gestures a small one. If no answer I just kiss her anyway and she responds with a smile, now I am "connecting". I pray that gaze of no recognition in the "wakeup" never lasts forever. "Please God, don't let her go into Neverland

Minimize the fear of caring for someone with dementia, and preserve the caregiver’s sanity with personal, functional tips to understand and cope with the disease.

Stage 7: Very severe cognitive decline (severe or late-stage Alzheimer’s disease) In the final stage of this disease, individuals lose the ability to respond to their environment, to carry on a conversation, and, eventually, to control their movements. They may still say words or phrases. At this stage, individuals need help with much of their daily personal care, including eating or using the toilet. They may also lose the ability to smile, to sit without support, and to hold their heads up. Reflexes become abnormal. Muscles grow rigid. Swallowing is impaired.

You don’t choose your family. They are God’s gift to you, as you are to them. Archbishop Desmond Tutu

is important to note that long-term use of PPIs is associated with an increased risk of dementia, depression, colorectal cancer, pneumonia, and hip fractures; deficiencies of B12, vitamin C, iron, calcium, magnesium, and zinc; and imbalances in the gut microbiome.3 Proper acid production in the stomach is important to the work of many essential digestive enzymes, especially pepsin, for the digestion of proteins. Stomach acid is also important for killing bacteria, viruses, parasites, and yeast that we are exposed to in our diets.

Sleep is also a very powerful tool against Alzheimer’s disease, as we’ll see in chapter 16. Sleep is when our brain heals itself; while we are in deep sleep our brains are essentially “cleaning house,” sweeping away intracellular waste that can build up between our neurons. Sleep disruptions and poor sleep are potential drivers of increased risk of dementia.

One quick note: diabetes ranks as only the seventh or eighth leading cause of death in the United States, behind things like kidney disease, accidents, and Alzheimer’s disease. In 2020, a little more than one hundred thousand deaths were attributed to type 2 diabetes, a fraction of the number due to either cardiovascular disease or cancer. By the numbers, it barely qualifies as a Horseman. But I believe that the actual death toll due to type 2 diabetes is much greater and that we undercount its true impact. Patients with diabetes have a much greater risk of cardiovascular disease, as well as cancer and Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias; one could argue that diabetes with related metabolic dysfunction is one thing that all these conditions have in common.

What is sensory integration therapy? This form of occupational therapy helps children and adults with SPD (sensory processing disorder) use all their senses together. These are the senses of touch, taste, smell, sight, and hearing. Sensory integration therapy is claimed to help people with SPD respond to sensory inputs such as light, sound, touch, and others; and change challenging or repetitive behaviours. Someone in the family may have trouble receiving and responding to information through their senses. This is a condition called sensory processing disorder (SPD). These people are over-sensitive to things in their surroundings. This disorder is commonly identified in children and with conditions like autism spectrum disorder. The exact cause of sensory processing disorder is yet to be identified. However, previous studies have proven that over-sensitivity to light and sound has a strong genetic component. Other studies say that those with sensory processing conditions have abnormal brain activity when exposed simultaneously to light and sound. Treatment for sensory processing disorder in children and adults is called sensory integration therapy. Therapy sessions are play-oriented for children, so they should be fun and playful. This may include the use of swings, slides, and trampolines and may be able to calm an anxious child. In addition, children can make appropriate responses. They can also perform more normally. SPD can also affect adults Someone who struggles with SPD should consider receiving occupational therapy, which has an important role in identifying and treating sensory integration issues. Occupational therapists are health professionals using different therapeutic approaches so that people can do every work they need to do, inside and outside their homes. Through occupational therapy, affected individuals are helped to manage their immediate and long-term sensory symptoms. Sensory integration therapy for adults, especially for people living with dementia or Alzheimer's disease, may use everyday sounds, objects, foods, and other items to rouse their feelings and elicit positive responses. Suppose an adult is experiencing agitation or anxiety. In that case, soothing music can calm them, or smelling a scent familiar to them can help lessen their nervous excitement and encourage relaxation, as these things can stimulate their senses. Seniors with Alzheimer's/Dementia can regain their ability to connect with the world around them. This can help improve their well-being overall and quality of life. What Are The Benefits of Sensory Integration Therapy Sensory integration treatment offers several benefits to people with SPD: * efficient organisation of sensory information. These are the things the brain collects from one's senses - smell, touch, sight, etc. * Active involvement in an exploration of the environment. * Maximised ability to function in recreational and other daily activities. * Improved independence with daily living activities. * Improved performance in the home, school, and community. * self-regulations. Affected individuals get the ability to understand and manage their behaviours and understand their feelings about things that happen around them. * Sensory systems modulation. If you are searching for an occupational therapist to work with for a family with a sensory processing disorder, check out the Mission Walk Therapy & Rehabilitation Centre. The occupational therapy team of Mission Walk uses individualised care plans, along with the most advanced techniques, so that patients can perform games, school tasks, and other day-to-day activities with their best functional skills. Call Mission Walk today for more information or a free consultation on sensory integration therapy. Our customer service staff will be happy to help.

research, however, has pointed to chronic bad sleep as a powerful potential cause of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. Sleep, it turns out, is as crucial to maintaining brain health as it is to brain function.

the person’s memory is or how strange his behavior, he is still a unique and special human being. We can continue to love a person even after he has changed drastically and even when we are deeply troubled

El alzhéimer no se va. Siempre se queda contigo, agazapado como un ladrón que te roba los recuerdos, la vida, cuando menos te lo esperas. Que te convierte en un fantasma o, lo que es peor, que convierte a tus seres queridos en seres irreconocibles para tus mismos ojos. Que te enfrenta a un reflejo desconocido ante el espejo. No, el alzhéimer no desaparece: te hace desaparecer.

For many reasons, the church at large has been absent in speaking about the struggle with Alzheimer’s disease. The psychological components of Alzheimer’s can frighten pastors and the general church body. After all, how can you minister to a person who doesn’t remember who you are, who doesn’t appear to understand what you’re saying? It hardly seems worth the time when they won’t even remember your visit. Many pastors feel ill-equipped to address the needs of people with dementia.

When I interview caregivers and ask what the church can do for them, the most common response is: They simply want the church to be present in their lives through the journey of dementia. They do not want to be alone.

It is true that scientists and doctors use the word clinically, and it is also true that patients and their loved ones don’t always know what to make of it, especially when they first receive the diagnosis. It is too imprecise, for one thing. Dementia can be a spectrum, ranging from mild to severe, and some of the causes of dementia are entirely reversible. Alzheimer’s disease, which accounts for more than half the cases of dementia, gets nearly all the attention, and as a result, the terms dementia and Alzheimer’s are often used interchangeably. They shouldn’t be. The word dementia, however, is steeped in our common vernacular, and so is the association with Alzheimer’s disease. In this book, I use both terms with the hope that the conversation, and the words we use to describe the broad condition of cognitive decline, will shift in the future.

Is Alzheimer’s a Vascular Disorder? In 1901, a woman named Auguste was taken to an insane asylum in Frankfurt, Germany, by her husband. She was described as a delusional, forgetful, disoriented woman who “could not carry out her homemaking duties.”66 She was seen by a Dr. Alzheimer and was to become the subject of the case that made Alzheimer a household name. On autopsy, Alzheimer described the plaques and tangles in her brain that would go on to characterize the disease. But lost in the excitement of discovering a new disease, a clue may have been overlooked. He wrote, “Die größeren Hirngefäße sind arteriosklerotisch verändert,” which translates to “The larger cerebral vessels show arteriosclerotic change.” He was describing the hardening of arteries inside his patient’s brain.67 We generally think of atherosclerosis as a condition of the heart, but it’s been described as “an omnipresent pathology that involves virtually the entire human organism.”68 You have blood vessels in every one of your organs, including your brain. The concept of “cardiogenic dementia,” first proposed in the 1970s, suggested that because the aging brain is highly sensitive to a lack of oxygen, lack of adequate blood flow may lead to cognitive decline.69 Today, we have a substantial body of evidence strongly associating atherosclerotic arteries with Alzheimer’s disease.70 Autopsies have shown repeatedly that Alzheimer’s patients tend to have significantly more atherosclerotic plaque buildup and narrowing of the arteries within the brain.71,72,73 Normal resting cerebral blood flow—the amount of blood circulating to the brain—is typically about a quart per minute. Starting in adulthood, people appear to naturally lose about half a percent of blood flow per year. By age sixty-five, this circulating capacity could be down by as much as 20 percent.74 While such a drop alone may not be sufficient to impair brain function, it can put you close to the edge. The clogging of the arteries inside, and leading to, the brain with cholesterol-filled plaque can drastically reduce the amount of blood—and therefore oxygen—your brain receives. Supporting this theory, autopsies have demonstrated that Alzheimer’s patients had particularly significant arterial blockage in the arteries leading to the memory centers of their brains.75 In light of such findings, some experts have even suggested that Alzheimer’s be reclassified as a vascular disorder.76

While Alzheimer’s ranks as the most common form of dementia, FTD ranks as the most common form of dementia for people under sixty. That makes this a critical story.

excessive stress is almost like an explosion, causing the hippocampus to lose cells and shrink. This affects the communication between the hippocampus and the central circuits of the brain, keeping it from building new good thoughts (memories) as well as causing memory loss. This is seen a lot in depression, Alzheimer’s, dementias, and other neuropsychiatric disorders.

The Familiar Squatter by Stewart Stafford Stranger at a ranting roundabout, Changeling deep in a cranial fog, An infant brooked with abandon, The frail bitterness fumed within. Another dawn, the lid loosens more, Recognition dims, pleading for hints, Let me see my reflection in full now, Squatter with a thousand-yard stare. A planet downsized to an asteroid belt, Leave, and I surrender to disintegrate, Core melts inside this atrophying shell, Beyond repair, a journey of light ahead. © Stewart Stafford, 2023. All rights reserved.

The more education we have, the more socially and physically active we are, and the more we participate in mentally stimulating activities, the less likely we are to get Alzheimer’s disease or dementia.

One study found that loneliness is as dangerous to one’s health as smoking fifteen cigarettes a day. It can lead to dementia or Alzheimer’s,

Insufficient sleep is only one among several risk factors associated with Alzheimer’s disease. Sleep alone will not be the magic bullet that eradicates dementia. Nevertheless, prioritizing sleep across the life span may be a significant factor for lowering Alzheimer’s disease risk.

The following questions must now be answered: How do I, as the child or caretaker, find an activity that will be challenging without being demeaning? How can I spend my time with her in the most meaningful way?

Being consistent about where and when you do an activity with your parent is important. People with dementia are mentally sharper in the morning. They are more responsive and capable of performing and succeeding with tasks at that time. As the day goes on and draws nearer to dusk, “sundowning” occurs. This frequently seen symptom of dementia is evidenced by an increase in confusion and agitation as daylight diminishes.

Another area to be concerned about is how you speak with your parent while he or she is doing an activity. Remember, in most cases your parent is trying to please you. He or she might struggle to do what you ask as comprehension becomes more and more difficult. In your parent’s past, everything might have come easily to him or her; with the onset of dementia, however, you will find that this ease has markedly changed. He or she will become frustrated, as will you. Your parent will try hard to succeed at what you ask him or her to do, so step back and take a deep breath. Offer directions in simple one-to two-step commands, repeating them as needed to help stimulate his or her memory. Don’t forget to offer words of praise. Tell him or her, “What a good job you have done” or “I am proud of you.” This reinforcement will go a long way toward his or her success.

How do I connect with my wife and get her to connect with me? This is always a constant desperation on my part especially because she doesn't speak. I am always afraid she will stop connecting with me, especially when I get that blank look, that "daze into no man's land."That is the day I am trying to avoid. There are different things I do, depending on the moment and situation we are in, always taking every opportunity I can to promote interaction with her.

He sits, silent, no longer mistaking the cable news for company— and when he talks, he talks of childhood, remembering some slight or conundrum as if it is a score to be retailed and settled after seventy-five years.

Not only does your brain get stronger, it gets healthier, too. Bilingual brains are more resistant to the wear and tear of age. Studies show a marked delay in the onset of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease for bilinguals. On average, elderly bilinguals will show symptoms of dementia five years later than monolinguals, and if they’ve learned more than two languages, then the effects are even stronger.

Alzheimer’s, senile dementia, dementia. What’s the difference? Not much for the carer. Ma is just a confused old person.

The author "nails it" in terms of how to deal with a parent's dementia. Rather than browbeating the subject, the author "plays along" and tries to enter the subject's own dementia-challenged "reality." The book contains excellent coping strategies and methodology for dealing with someone suffering with and enduring the pain of dementia or Alzheimer's. It does so with sensitivity, candor and laugh-provoking humor.

Do Archdemons suffer senile dementia?” The bearded one gave a cruel snigger. “What? You mean, Kird Vadu, the zombie who put the Zed in Alzheimer’s?

•   Aerobic exercise just twice a week halves your risk of general dementia. It cuts your risk of alzheimer’s by 60 percent.

dramatic reductions in the prevalence of dementia could be achieved if more people underwent genetic testing to determine their ApoE status and initiated a preventive program long before any symptoms appeared.

Our certified, bonded, and insured caregivers provide in home care, elderly care, senior care, companionship, meal preparation, medication reminders, errands, light housekeeping and laundry, to help with bathing, dressing, grooming, incontinence care, 24 Hour Care, Live in Care, Alzheimers and Dementia Care. We provide home care in Boca Raton, Delray beach, Mission Bay, Boca Del Mar, Sandalfoot Cove, Whisper Walk, Highland Beach, High Point, Kings Point, Gulf Stream and surrounding areas.

As we become ever more insulin-resistant and glucose-intolerant, as our blood sugar gets higher along with our insulin levels, as our blood pressure elevates and we get ever fatter, we are more likely to be diagnosed as diabetic and manifest the diseases and conditions that associate with diabetes. These include not just heart disease, gout, cancer, Alzheimer’s, and the cluster of Western diseases that Burkitt and Trowell included in their provisional list, but all the conditions typically perceived as complications of diabetes: blood-vessel (vascular) complications that lead to strokes, dementia, and kidney disease; retinopathy (blindness) and cataracts; neuropathies (nerve disorders); plaque deposits in the arteries of the heart (leading to heart attacks) or the legs and feet (leading to amputations); accumulation of advanced glycation end products, AGEs, in the collagen of our skin that can make diabetics look prematurely old, and that in joints, arteries, and the heart and lungs can cause the loss of elasticity as we age. It’s this premature aging of the skin, arteries, and joints that has led some diabetes researchers to think of the disease as a form of accelerated aging. But increasing our risk of contracting all these other chronic conditions means we’re also likely to get these ailments at ever-younger ages and thus, effectively, age faster.

Biomarkers of inflammation, like cytokines and CRP, are increased in many stressful situations, including poverty, debt and social isolation. Carers of patients with Alzheimer’s disease, people with day-to-day responsibility for a spouse or relative with dementia, have increased inflammatory biomarkers.74 So do adults who suffered poverty, neglect or maltreatment as children.

The association was so strong that the researchers could predict which nuns might have dementia just by reading their letters. Ninety per cent of the nuns who went on to develop Alzheimer’s had ‘low linguistic ability’ as young women, while only 13 per cent of the nuns who maintained cognitive ability into old age got a ‘low idea density’ score in their essays.

power

Dr. Robert hess says that Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia, which is a disorder that slowly dies off in the brain cells. The cause is not known yet, but certain genetic defects are clearly linked to developing this disease.

Yeah, they kinda swim around all pointlessly, doncha think?” Edna winced, squinting. Over and over again, in the same li’l old place. It’s madness. Glad I’m not a fish.

He placed a cigarette in his mouth and sat down at his regular spot over in the white gazebo, where all the smokers were supposed to do their dirty business. He patted his pockets, searching for a lighter. Nothing. He’d forgotten to bring it. But it wasn’t his fault. He was expected to forget everything because he was the lucky recipient of life’s final going-away present, that red velvet, chocolate-covered cake of wonderfulness that the doctors liked to call Alzheimer’s. With Alzheimer’s, suddenly nothing was his fault anymore. No fault. No blame. No choice. No freedom.

In cases of dementia, however, the determination of the actual cause is likely to be arbitrary. Most of us, if we live long enough, will accumulate both vascular damage and Alzheimer’s plaques and tangles in our brains, even if we don’t manifest any perceptible symptoms of dementia. (Similarly, most of us will have plaques in our arteries even if we don’t manifest clinical signs of heart disease.)

Neurological disorders like dementia and Alzheimer’s are detected by comparative performance evaluations, rather than blood work.

Read this mental healing and strengthening book to your beloved grandpa/grandma and strengthen your family bonding in Christ. Help them to find their way in this life. Help them from being lost in the mind and ways through dementia. If your grandparents can still read, bless them with this salvation from Alzheimers healing book as a gift from you. Tell grandma she is your best friend and anounce to grumpy grandpa that he is your good and inspiring friend whom you love so dearly. This Holy Spirit breathed book allows you to feel strongly that parenting does not stop at all. When you have old grandparents, you are a parent at any age through your love for them.

A PET scan of his brain activity showed diminished capacity on the left side of his brain, hence, planning ahead, strategic thinking is harmed. A positive is that he is less critical of things. He has lost language and gained singing... THAT makes for more fun. What amazes me is that so many times he returns and talks and seems to think like he used to. His voice and laugh returns to normal. How can that be???

Today we traveled back south toward Portland, Oregon. It occurred to me that we were now going toward our home in Florida instead of away from it. Maybe this concept was why I was feeling unenthusiastic and worn out.

For me as a spouse of a husband who is sexually competent, this is a big issue for me. Not because I desire sex, but because he does. He has become like a child in many ways. Yet, even as his abilities and personality diminish, he still wants us to act like we always have as husband and wife.

one speed processing training program called Double Decision reduced the risk for dementia by nearly 50 percent ten years after the training, which is far more than any drug ever has.

While dementia and Alzheimer’s patients may have years, a brain cancer patient’s mental changes may happen in hours or weeks.

Try

He met a twenty-year-old patient with a paralytic dementia from untreated syphilis, a thirty-six-year-old with cerebral toxoplasmosis, and a forty-year-old with a bacterial meningitis that had been left untreated for too long. Down a long hallway with arched windows

Proteins build up in a damaged brain. This damaged brain leads to Parkinson's, Alzheimer's disease and dementia. The beginning of these problems don't start with your genetics; they start with inflammation.

Counter to common belief, there isn’t just one type of dementia. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common, but is only one of many types. For a number of treatment reasons, it is critical to know which type of dementia an individual is suffering from as soon as possible.

They were all devastated when they saw the debate, he said. He couldn’t diagnose it—they all had different theories, whether early Lewy body dementia or Alzheimer’s or a combination or something else. Whatever it is, the neurologists said,

Turmeric Smoothie TOTAL COOK TIME: 5 MINUTES | MAKES 1 SERVING Turmeric, which has recently been celebrated for its immune-boosting properties, has figured prominently in the Okinawan diet for hundreds of years. Okinawans use it as both a cooking spice and a tea, and scientists have started to study it for its anticancer, anti-inflammatory, and antiaging properties. Its main compound, curcumin, has shown in both clinical and population studies to slow the progression of dementia—a reason why Okinawans may suffer much lower rates of Alzheimer’s disease than Americans. Turmeric regulates FOXO3 (a gene associated with longevity that reduces inflammation in the body), making our cells more efficient. Traditionally, Okinawans sliced and dried turmeric and then steeped it to make tea. But today most people rely on powdered turmeric for their daily cooking and drinking. You can enjoy this smoothie as a snack, a light meal, or even a dessert. 1 ripe banana 1 apple, cored and cut into a few pieces 1 teaspoon turmeric powder 1 cup vanilla soy milk 5 cups of ice Blend all ingredients in a high-speed blender. Serve immediately.

There is plenty of evidence to suggest a correlation between dementias such as Alzheimer’s disease and excessive, long-term inflammation in the body, known as chronic inflammation. A 2010 meta-analysis (an analysis of multiple papers, combining their findings) of 1,500 individuals found that those with Alzheimer’s disease tended to have raised levels of inflammatory cytokines in their blood.5 Curiously, further studies found that levels of systemic inflammation tend to be high in the early stages of the disease but not in advanced dementia.6 We also know that suffering from multiple infections increases the risk of developing dementia.7 There is also a dose-response relationship: the more infections (regardless of type), the higher the risk of dementia.8 An intriguing study, published by researchers at Stanford University in 2023, points the finger at one specific infectious agent: the varicella-zoster virus.9 This is the form of herpes virus we met in the last chapter, which has the dishonourable role of causing both chickenpox and shingles. The team analysed data from the National Health Service in Wales, because in late 2013 the Welsh Government enacted a health intervention that doubles up as a large natural experiment: they rolled out the shingles vaccine to people born on or after 2 September 1933. Over a seven-year follow-up comparing the vaccinated to the unvaccinated, they found that the shingles vaccine reduced the chance of developing dementia by around 20 per cent. While these are early days – and this study raises as many questions as it answers – it is looking likely that infectious agents are responsible for some proportion of dementia cases. Non-infectious inflammatory stimuli also increase the risk of developing dementia, from surgical operations to chronic autoimmune diseases.10 A remarkable link between systemic inflammation and dementia was uncovered in 2016, when researchers at the University of Southampton found that those with gum inflammation (periodontitis) had a six-fold increased risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease over a six-month period.11 In summary: it appears that inflammation in the body can drive the development of Alzheimer’s disease.

For people developing difficulty using a knife but still able to use other utensils, cutting their food in the kitchen before bringing it to the table will enable them to feed themselves with a fork and spoon. This means they are fully independent. Since there is no knife at their place setting, you have also helped them avoid the utensil they have difficulty with. “Talking people through” tasks they are having difficulty with—that is, explaining each step as you go—may calm them and allow them to accept help with dressing, bathing, getting up from a chair, and feeding themselves.

The goal of helping people with impaired abilities is to allow them to do everything they can while helping them accomplish what they cannot.

The woman’s eyes moved back and forth over the mouth of her open Coach bag. Emma took her gently by the elbow. “I’m Emma. What’s your name?” The woman looked up at her. “Lisa.” “Nice to meet you,” Emma said, helping her to her feet. “Can I see your phone for a second? Unlock it for me? I want to see if Samantha is almost here.” When Lisa gave it over, Emma slipped it into my hand. “Justin, can you make a call for me?” she whispered. “Let Samantha know Lisa is having coffee with us?” I found Samantha in her contacts and called. Ten minutes later a tearful twentysomething woman ran through the restaurant to our booth to get her mother. Emma had sat with Lisa the whole time talking about an imaginary day at the beach she was going to have in a city two thousand miles from here. “How did you know?” I asked, once we were alone again. The woman seemed perfectly normal to me. At first glance anyway. “Her shirt was buttoned wrong,” she said. “I used to work in memory care. She seemed off. Disoriented.” “Was it dementia? She seems too young.” “Dementia can happen young. Could be early-onset Alzheimer’s, head injury. Could be a lot of things.” The waitress stopped by and filled our coffee cups. Emma grabbed some sugar packets, tore them, and spilled them into her mug. “Why didn’t you tell her the truth? That we’re not in California,” I asked. “It’s too confusing. The truth scares them. Sometimes the best way to show love or be kind to someone is to meet them where they are.” “Literally? Or figuratively?” She paused with the spoon in her hand. “Both.

Rest Sleeping less than the 7–8 hours per night that is optimal for most adults (according to a recent report by America’s National Sleep Foundation based on the advice of 18 leading sleep scientists) is not sustainable for 98–99 percent of the human population.3 Failure to fulfill this quota impacts on a whole host of measures of brain function. Over time, habitual paucity of sleep leads to an elevated risk of everything from Alzheimer’s disease to obesity and diabetes. The link between poor sleep and dementia is because the cleansing system of the brain, known as the glymphatic system, takes 7–8 hours to flush toxins out of the brain. These build up over time due to oxidative processes such as stress and alcohol, and potentially lead to the symptoms of dementia. This shows the long-term influence of sleep on The Source, but its immediate impact is also extremely damaging. Lack of sleep has a serious impact on the functioning of The Source, and if you’re serious about harnessing your full brainpower, you can’t afford to ignore it. A whole night’s missed sleep has been proven to impact on IQ.4

intake of UPF by 10 per cent was associated with a 25 per cent increase in the risk of dementia and a 14 per cent increase in the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

From my book, CARE FOR THE CARER, AN ALZHEIMER'S MEMOIR "Is there a cure?" Jane asked repeatedly. This simple sentence had several possible meanings: Jeff, I'm slipping, hold. Jeff, I'm sinking, save me. Jeff, I'm scared, protect me. I wanted to hug her or even to pick her up and rock her in my arms....to tell her, "I'm here with you always," to admit myself, "I'm scared too.

From my book, Care for the Carer, An Alzheimer's Memoir "Is there a cure?" Jane asked repeatedly. This simple sentence had several possible meanings: Jeff, I'm slipping, hold me. Jeff, I'm sinking, save me. Jeff, I'm scared, protect me. I wanted to hug her or even to pick her up and rock her in my arms....to tell her "I'm here with you always," to admit to myself, "I'm scared too.

In 2017, The Journal Stroke, released a bombshell paper that revealed the risk for stroke, Alzheimer’s, & dementia in general among people who drank artificially sweetened drinks. What they found was quite remarkable. Participants who drank 1 or more artificially sweetened drinks per day had almost 3x the risk of stroke & 3x the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Within the context of uric acid specifically; here’s what to keep in mind. It’s important to avoid anything that interferes with your body’s ability to break down & filter toxins & that includes sugar substitutes.

Between 60% and 80% of people with symptoms of dementia have Alzheimer’s disease, which appears most frequently in people 65 years and older.

From CARE FOR THE CARER, AN ALZHEIMER'S MEMOIR 'Is there a cure?' Jane asked repeatedly. This simple sentence had several possible meanings. Jeff, I'm slipping, hold me. Jeff, I'm sinking, save me. Jeff, I'm scared, protect me I wanted to hug her or even to pick her up and rock her in my arms...

I wanted to keep her from slipping out of my life. I wanted to squeeze the Alzheimer's right out of her. I wanted us to be who we once were. None of that could happen. But at least, from that day on, when words alluded Jane, hugs took their place. From CARE FOR THE CARER, AN ALZHEIMER'S MEMOIR

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How's Mother?" "In and out." As I said it I wondered which was the bad way: in or out? Was she lost when she was in her mind or out of it?

There is a clear difference between the objectivity and subjectivity of the physical diagnostic criteria, such as that used for Parkinson’s, and the symptomatic diagnostic criteria used for mental disorders in the DSM. Brain diseases, like Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, Frontotemporal lobe degeneration, Prion disease, Lewy Body dementia, and many others mentioned in the DSM-V, are diagnosed through objective physical tests, such as MRI scans, detection of misfolded proteins or identification of certain genes. These tests, and therefore the diagnoses of these disorders are objective; the MRI scan either does or does not show a physical indicator of biological dysfunction, misfolded proteins and particular genes are either biologically present or not. In this way, the diagnoses of such brain dysfunctions are objective, they either exist as a matter of fact or they do not. The need for these tests might be brought about because a service user is experiencing symptoms such as ‘postural rigidity’ or ‘tremors’, but these symptoms are not enough alone for a diagnosis of physical brain dysfunction, objective tests must be carried out. In contrast, the diagnosis of mental disorders rests on clusters of symptoms alone. If we are assessing whether someone is displaying ‘childlike silliness’ or ‘excessive emotionality’, we have no objective tests to aid us, our assessment is made solely on our subjective interpretation of the service user.

There is a clear difference between the objectivity and subjectivity of the physical diagnostic criteria, such as that used for Parkinson’s, and the symptomatic diagnostic criteria used for mental disorders in the DSM. Brain diseases, like Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, Frontotemporal lobe degeneration, Prion disease, Lewy Body dementia, and many others mentioned in the DSM-V, are diagnosed through objective physical tests, such as MRI scans, detection of misfolded proteins or identification of certain genes. These tests, and therefore the diagnoses of these disorders are objective; the MRI scan either does or does not show a physical indicator of biological dysfunction, misfolded proteins and particular genes are either biologically present or not. In this way, the diagnoses of such brain dysfunctions are objective, they either exist as a matter of fact or they do not. The need for these tests might be brought about because a service user is experiencing symptoms such as ‘postural rigidity’ or ‘tremors’, but these symptoms are not enough alone for a diagnosis of physical brain dysfunction, objective tests must be carried out. In contrast, the diagnosis of mental disorders rests on clusters of symptoms alone. If we are assessing whether someone is displaying ‘childlike silliness’ or ‘excessive emotionality’, we have no objective tests to aid us, our assessment is made solely on our subjective interpretation of the service user.

There is a clear difference between the objectivity and subjectivity of the physical diagnostic criteria, such as that used for Parkinson’s, and the symptomatic diagnostic criteria used for mental disorders in the DSM. Brain diseases, like Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, Frontotemporal lobe degeneration, Prion disease, Lewy Body dementia, and many others mentioned in the DSM-V, are diagnosed through objective physical tests, such as MRI scans, detection of misfolded proteins or identification of certain genes. These tests, and therefore the diagnoses of these disorders are objective; the MRI scan either does or does not show a physical indicator of biological dysfunction, misfolded proteins and particular genes are either biologically present or not. In this way, the diagnoses of such brain dysfunctions are objective, they either exist as a matter of fact or they do not. The need for these tests might be brought about because a service user is experiencing symptoms such as ‘postural rigidity’ or ‘tremors’, but these symptoms are not enough alone for a diagnosis of physical brain dysfunction, objective tests must be carried out. In contrast, the diagnosis of mental disorders rests on clusters of symptoms alone. If we are assessing whether someone is displaying ‘childlike silliness’ or ‘excessive emotionality’, we have no objective tests to aid us, our assessment is made solely on our subjective interpretation of the service user.