For those that have lost or are losing a loved one to Alzheimer

[sheshe2]

I found this article. In honor of my dad that I just lost, Luminous Animal just lost her mother as well and all those that have suffered, I wanted to post this. It's about the patient and it sure is about the family that will not be remembered. Our loss is keen. I know many here have experienced the pain. A cruel cruel disease.

The light fades away slowly, they no longer know who we are. They forget us on their journey into darkness. My dad. The man who tossed me in the air at the age of five, as we were laughing and laughing. I lost him, he forgot who I was. I was the tomboy that he tossed into his rig, way up high and in the sky. He gave me a world wide view, I could see everything from there. That big window, my future.

In the end, he would not miss me. He forgot me. He did not want to,yet he did.

These Middle School Girls Had An Idea That Could Help Alzheimer's Patients Remember Loved Ones

Dubbed "Remember Me," the app would use facial recognition technology and a smartphone camera to help Alzheimer's patients recognize family, friends, caregivers and even pets -- sort of like a scrapbook. A single snap of the camera would pull up information like the subject's name, age, relationship to the patient -- and even previous photos of the patient and subject together.

Though the app fell short of the national prize when the challenge wrapped Tuesday, "Remember Me" picked up "Best In State" and "Best In Region" accolades. The team also picked up a $5,000 cash prize for their school.

Annie said even though their app won't be taken up by Verizon, she hopes they can find someone to take their demo and bring the app the life.

“This group of girls is amazing," science teacher Carolyn Anderson, one of the team's faculty advisors, told HuffPost. "They’ve never once asked what they were going to get out of it. They just wanted to help others. And they really wanted to see it used to help Alzheimer's patients."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/05/verizon-alzheimers-app_n_6617290.html?cps=gravity_2082_-1147195968306831863

Omaha Steve posted this Op for me almost thirty days to the day of my Fathers passing. It was so very kind of him. There is a video at the link of Glen Campbell, his final ballad is called “I’m Not Gonna Miss You”. Glen Cambell is reaching the finale stages of Alzheimer's Disease.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1017220580

[HeiressofBickworth]

1. Last Sunday I saw the movie Still Alice

about a woman with early-onset Alzheimers. It was sad and yet one had to admire the tenacious way she tried to hold on to her faculties as long as possible. Another movie about losing a loved one to the disease is Away From Her.

Losing my mind, my awareness, my independence is one of my great fears. I hope that in the event of such a diagnosis, I will be able to make an end to it while I still had the ability to do so. I wouldn't wish the effects of the disease on my family.

[enough]

19. Make your plan and put it in place BEFORE you get the diagnosis. And find someone who understands

and will help you when the time comes. From what I've seen in my family, by the time you get the diagnosis, it's too late. And your family WILL go through the very thing you are now hoping to prevent.

[shenmue]

2. Wow

[Marie Marie]

3. My condolences to you sheshe and any others who lost a loved one to this tragic disease.

I lost my parents far too soon but never had to face this gradual wasting away of their very essence. I can only imagine how difficult it must be for the patient AND their families. Lovely post in tribute and remembrance.

[merrily]

4. I am so sorry. It is a difficult illness for everyone. The patient and the caregivers.

I don't have a parent or grandparent who suffered from it, but my cousin's wife was diagnosed with early onset at 40. I didn't understand how it could hit someone that young but that was what I was told. Their two kids were just around puberty, too.

[peacebird]

5. My Uncle John was a huge bear of a Greek American, he couldn't speak without using his hands!

What a storyteller! Truly gifted and gregarious, an amazing man. He was holding the second flag at Iwo Jima, in case the first touched the ground.
Uncle John knew he had developed alzheimers when he sat at his desk to write his beloved daughter a letter... He burst into tears and said he didn't remember how to write.
It still breaks my heart that that wonderful man KNEW, and knew there was nothing that could help him.

[salin]

6. What a brave thing for Glen Campbell to create.

What a gift of understanding to his family - and to the public (that is courageous.) Wow.

[Omaha Steve]

7. Mayo clinic: Dementia isn't a specific disease

Last edited Thu Feb 12, 2015, 07:34 AM - Edit history (1)

http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dementia/basics/definition/con-20034399

Dementia isn't a specific disease. Instead, dementia describes a group of symptoms affecting memory, thinking and social abilities severely enough to interfere with daily functioning.

Dementia indicates problems with at least two brain functions, such as memory loss and impaired judgment or language, and the inability to perform some daily activities such as paying bills or becoming lost while driving.

Though memory loss generally occurs in dementia, memory loss alone doesn't mean you have dementia. There is a certain extent of memory loss that is a normal part of aging.

Many causes of dementia symptoms exist. Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of a progressive dementia. Some causes of dementia may be reversible.

K&R!

[sheshe2]

11. Yes

Some causes of dementia may be reversible.

Please let it be so steve.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

8. Both my parents had Alzheimer's.

Diagnosed by a neurologist in 1995.
Neither of them ever stopped recognizing me or anyone else in the family.

However, they got extremely grumpy and difficult to deal with. Every time I tried to help them they got mad at me. My mom refused to go into a nursing home after dad's death. And she was in worse health than dad. She lasted 2 more years and I took care of her in my home the last three months, since she refused to go in a nursing home. They may have had other kinds of dementia besides Alzheimer's. I know a lot of people that had parents that were less functional than mine and had a harder time of it.

[Jamaal510]

9. This is a little OT, but

I'm eager to find out if sleep-aids like Unisom and ZZZ Quil can cause Alzheimer's Disease. I take them about 2-3 times per week (particularly on nights before school) since I have insomnia, but I heard online that they can cause Alzheimer's when taken long-term. When I get the chance, I'm going to ask a doctor.

[Bluenorthwest]

21. but I avoid those medications entirely

I'm no doctor but I've suspected those pills long before recent reports such as this one: "Cumulative Use of Strong Anticholinergic Medications and Incident Dementia."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/01/150126124721.htm

I recommend reading that material....

[Manifestor_of_Light]

23. I think the sleep aid is benadryl, a decongestant.

The sleepiness is a side effect. Some people are not made sleepy by benadryl.

[Shemp Howard]

10. Thanks for posting this...so much to think about. (nt)

[brer cat]

12. It is a cruel disease,

and probably one of the worst for families. I am so sorry you went through this sheshe.

[Mugu]

13. Anybody that has been down this road

knows what a horrible road it is.

[DeSwiss]

14. K&R

US National Library of Medicine & The National Institutes of Health - The potential therapeutic effects of THC on Alzheimer's disease.

[angrychair]

15. my condolences Sheshe

Lost my Grandmother in '87 to Alzheimer's disease. It hard thing to watch and even harder when your a teenager and since I was a military brat I only got to see her a handful of times in my life and my last memories were when she was her most vulnerable and confused. Has always frustrated me that, of all the possible but few memories, those last weeks stick out in my mind.

[sheshe2]

16. Back at you, angrychair.

Tears~so many tears.
all I have for you is a hug,so very sorry.

[SunSeeker]

17. That video of Glen Campbell is amazing.

I remember as a kid seeing him sing "Galveston." Man, he had a beautiful voice. It must be devastating for his family to see him slip away. I actually find comfort in that "I'm Not Gonna Miss You" song. I'd like to think that since they can't remember what they're missing, they're not suffering the same anguish as their family members who do.

Thanks for sharing, she.



Glen Campbell - Galveston (1969 - HD - Restored):

[FrodosPet]

18. When you've seen your grandmother naked and covered in her own B.M. screaming "Help me!"...

...and all you can get when you try to get her help is endless phone tag and family members more worried about keeping the house because of Medicaid long term care regulations, then you've had a front row seat to the horrors of Alzheimer's Disease.

Much love and respect to everyone dealing with that dread disease.

[Javaman]

20. It's a cruel disease. I lost my Mom to it.

I don't know how this app would work. Considering my mom didn't even recognized photos of herself.

[Grammy23]

22. My mom died of complications associated with Alzheimer's in 2006.

It is a complex disease with a variety of symptoms. She was always known to be a bit erratic in some of her decisions but that trait got much worse as the disease came on her. Her children (me included) denied what we were seeing in her behavior for a long time. We just thought it was some more of her oddball habits. As things progressed she got increasingly paranoid and stubborn. The thing is we would rather have attributed how she acted to stubbornness and Mama being "mama" than admit there was something going on with her brain.

As the disease progressed she KNEW something was wrong and got so frustrated at the memory loss she dealt with so frequently. She was a Registered Nurse and it nearly drove her to distraction to not be able to remember the words for certain things. But we still didn't admit that it might be more than the normal memory loss that comes with aging.

She eventually came to live with me and spent three years in my home. My husband was also her caregiver and I could not have done the job without him. Even though we both had jobs, we were able to arrange our work schedule so one or the other of us was with her all the time. Our lives slowly became all about caring for her. We had almost no social life until shortly before she died when we got home health care and then hospice care. She died two days after her placement in a nursing home at age 92. She didn't really know who we were but was sweet and docile. Some people become aggressive and violent but she did not, thank goodness.

I hope we find the cause and CURE for this devastating disease because it worries me that I'll end up as a burden to my husband or son. My mother never wanted to be a burden and said so many times but unfortunately she did not get to make that choice. I didn't mind taking care of my Mom, but had NO idea what I was getting into when she came to live with us. NO IDEA.....

[sheshe2]

25. My heart goes out to you Grammy.

It was so hard to watch. My sister and I tried to give him home care, but after his stroke we were no longer able to give him the care he needed. He was in the nursing home for the last 2 years of his life. Dad too passed away days after entering hospice at 92. This was 4 months ago now.

[Grammy23]

28. Yes, indeed, it is so hard to see your loved one lose touch

With reality and become someone you don't recognize either.
Your loss is still fresh so I know you are reliving what these past few years were about. We all do the best we can under the circumstances we are dealt. Thank you for your kind comments and I offer them back to you. It's important to be heard when you are in that kind of situation and to get validation from others who know your pain.

My mom ended up under hospice care and in the nursing home after we were physically unable to care for her without risking injury to her AND ourselves. I honestly believe she waited and held on so she didn't die at my home and in fact, died shortly before we got to the nursing home to see her. I worried every day for more than a year that I would find her dead...so I guess she spared me from that.

There are lots of us who have been on this journey and it is good to know that others...even strangers...care.

[F4lconF16]

24. Thank you for the post and the video.

Tearing up a bit...

[jwirr]

26. I hope this works. My mother was forever searching for the babies. She would wear herself out

looking for them. The sad part is that they were grown up and often were setting right beside her. I always wished I could somehow bring them back to her.

[Faux pas]

27. Kudos to those girls!

I did all my grieving for the loss of my mother during the 10 1/2 years I cared for her. The only saving grace was she remembered me right up until she died. My heart goes out to those who's loved ones did/do forget them. Can't imagine that pain.

[In_The_Wind]

29. sheshe

I'm so sorry for your loss.

I have no words to take away your pain. So, I'll just cry with you. It's been difficult for you. I'm sorry for that.




May your days ahead be filled with warm memories of the past. May the living give you a soothing balm of love enough to ease your pain.



I found this thread posted by HereSince1628 that may help. http://www.democraticunderground.com/1260797

[sheshe2]

30. thank you ITW...