Dementia Changes Everything

When my grandmother checked my grandfather into the Alzheimer's home, it was lunchtime.

"Let us take him back to eat," the attendant told her, "while you stay here and finish filling out the paperwork."

"But," my grandmother protested, "he won't eat if I'm not there to feed him."

"It will be okay," she was told, and the attendant gently led my grandfather away.  My grandmother, agitated, filled out the papers as quickly as she could, then rushed into the dining room to help her husband of over 60 years eat his lunch.  She quickly found him and sat down next to him.

"Well, hello!" He said with a smile.  "What's you're name?"

"Kathleen," she answered.

"Isn't that something," he replied.  "My wife's name was Kathleen!"

My grandfather died of Alzheimer's.

My uncle died of Alzheimer's.

My mother died of Alzheimer's.

My aunt has it.  It's possible that my brother has it, too.

If you are reading this blog, chances are someone you love has been diagnosed with dementia.  Or, maybe you are afraid of getting it yourself.  I know I am!  But I am writing this blog for the family members who don't have it.  I want to share with you what I learned through my mother's battle with this horrific illness.

I don't claim to have all the answers.  Dementia takes on many forms and is different for each patient.  But one thing I do know:  Dementia changes everything.  It changes all the rules of how you get through each day, how you interact with your loved one, and how you deal with the rest of the world as a result.

I'm here to tell you about some of those changes.  I hope it will help.