Alzheimer's And so the journey begins.

I think most people get a feeling that a family member has Alzheimer's disease. Anything might trigger that feeling. A change in speech or comment that's out of character. They might do something they would never do. They might respond in an unusual way to something they see or hear. It might be anything different or unusual but strange enough to cause you to pay attention. If the person is up in age the thought of Alzheimer's will enter your mind. When the real concern starts and you know there is something wrong you will start to hope it's less serious than Alzheimer's disease.

Like normal forgetfulness attributed to age. Maybe it's mini strokes. They can treat that can't they? I know it's a vitamin B-12 deficiency. A 30 day regimen of injections and we can switch over to sublingual pills and they will be better. Maybe taking choline is what they need to do. You can drive yourself crazy.

So you go to the doctor and they take over deciding. What a relief it is to put the decision in the hands of a doctor. What's their game plan. You pay them a lot of money and they will tell you what you told them. The layman is not permitted to diagnose, treat or prescribe under penalty of fines and incarceration. So you need the expertise of a doctor to place the tag of a specific condition like Alzheimer's disease on a person.

I have found that you will know no more after the tests as you did before them. But as long as there is another test to do there is always a possibility they may find something else. Now they are coming out with more expensive tests to tell you the same thing.

People that can afford the new scans will get them. I don't blame them for wanting to eliminate all possibilities. With something as scary and final as Alzheimer's disease people will do anything to prove it's not true. There are many forms of senility and dementia that have similar symptoms. Of course the doctor will say they have confirmed their suspicions. You have Alzheimer's disease - Slap! Maybe you'll be one of the lucky ones you never know. I pray you are.

What does this mean for the person with Alzheimer's or other similar diseases and their caregivers. They will more than likely be all classified and grouped into the same category and the tag they place on them will be Alzheimer's. What's in a name any way. It's the person that's important not the name of the disease. You are not the disease you are a person that just happens to have a condition that needs to be addressed.

It was about a year and a half before Edith's doctor was told we had a suspicion of Alzheimer's disease. This doctor is certified in Geriatrics and saw Edith on a regular basis but didn't have a clue until we brought it to her attention. My father and I were there during the checkups. We couldn't understand why the doctor wasn't picking up on what we thought was so evident during the visits. We finally decided to tell her. Maybe when I saw certified in Geriatrics framed on the wall I read it wrong and it really said she was a certified geriatric.

There had been more than a doctor patient relationship between my parents and this doctor or so it would seem. They knew a lot more about each others families and interests. There was exchanges of personal contact info beyond what was normal. Cell phone, beeper and home phone numbers and home addresses. The office visits were longer than you might expect because every body just kept talking. Edith would do things like go to the family blueberry patch and pick a few quarts of berries to take to the doctors office.

I'm not bringing this up to attack the doctor and make her sound bad. I want you to be aware that just because the person is going to see a doctor doesn't mean the doctor will be skilled or perceptive enough to see there is a problem without being told. Look at how much more than average the doctor knew my mother Edith and didn't see Alzheimer's.

I think that often when an older person has a feeling something isn't right they don't tell the doctor. They go in for their doctor appointment every 2 weeks or once a month. This will be depend on what drugs the doctor has them on or what condition they have. If they get through the examine without the doctor finding anything they don't mention it. This isn't just With Alzheimer's disease but with other problems as well. At least with Alzheimer's you have an excuse. You don't remember to tell the doctor.

Doctors only see you when you come to the office. If the doctor notices a problem or if another person is there and mentions that they have noticed a change in the persons ability to remember. The doctor may try seeing if they can remember a few words. They will do this by asking the patient to remember a short list of words. The doctor then engages the patient in a general conversation. After the conversation the doctor asks the patient to recall as many of the words as they can. This only shows if the patient can retain the words in their short term memory.

This will not determine if Alzheimer's disease is present. It is usually the first test to check for cognitive dysfunction in an otherwise normal person. They may also ask questions that a person with normal memory should know. Do you know what you ate for your last meal? Do you know what month it is or what day it is? Do you remember what the weather was like yesterday? You can see the choice of questions are endless and can be easily used in conversation without causing suspicion in the patient.

And so the journey begins. Multiple tests and many trips to the doctor. Don't forget your prescription. There may be more prescriptions in the future to mask the side effects of the first drug so don't put your wallet away yet. They will have to do blood tests to make sure the medications aren't causing liver or kidney failure. If a problem does show up it they will probably say it's not from the medicine it's from the progression of the disease. They will then proceed to take the person off the drug they suspect is causing the damage.