Alzheimer.

[oldfella]

About about two months ago we were having lunch with friends and during a conversation, I was stopped by my friend who pointed out to me that I was repeating something that I had told him 45 mins earlier, and did I mind if he suggested to me that I should talk to my Doctor, as there was a test that that she could give me. I went to see my doctor and she gave me the test, which is simply a memory test, and I was borderline. Now you may think, that I should have been aware of this myself, and I was, but you tend to think, that as you get old, putting a tool down and then after ten minutes, spending 5 minutes looking for it, is part of growing old, and so it is, but, it can also mean much more.
She sent me for Brain Scan, and made an appointment for me with a Neurosurgeon.

The scan was clear, and yesterday I went to see the Surgeon, who gave me an few more tests, again just memory, and as a result he put me on medication, which is not a cure, but stops further deterioration.
He explained to me that there is no cure at the moment for Alzheimer, but they think that they are getting close to finding an answer.
I must point out that the medication, is very expensive 108 Euros for 28 days at one tablet per day, and the treatment is for one year, but I am fortunate that I live in France.

The reason I write of this is because maybe there some members of the forum, that are unaware of these tests and treatments ( as I was ) and have parents, grandparents, that they worry about, I hope not, and I hope that the Health service in the UK, gives the same care to the elderly, as here in France.

Eddy :

[Green Aura]

Sorry to hear that Eddy. I've heard the medication can be very effective, and well done you for getting checked out - so many people just pretend nothing's happening.

It's a long time since I worked in that field and of course trends and opinions change but one of the things we used to encourage was regularly doing puzzles, crosswords, sudoku and that type of thing to keep the little grey cells active.

I do them, just in case!

[Milims]

Oh dear - I think that I need to be checked out as I've been repeating myself at regular intervals for the last 41 years!

Seriously tho- well done for doing something about your concerns - many would just have put it down to a quirk of life.

[Mrs H]

Sorry to hear that in one way but on the other that's fab news that u hav had the tests and r now on meds to slow down deterioration. My father in law desperatly needs to go for those tests but refuses and it has caused many a row to the point I don't even mention it anymore. I noticed a marked difference in him about 5yrs ago and suggested then that he should go, he has deteriorated since then but he will not budge. He calls them senior moments!! Hope the meds do the trick for u . Xxx

[chickenchargrill]

It's a long time since I worked in that field and of course trends and opinions change but one of the things we used to encourage was regularly doing puzzles, crosswords, sudoku and that type of thing to keep the little grey cells active.

I do them, just in case!

They're still encouraged, and rightly so.



Doesn't sound like it'd be an issue for you as yet, but memory triggers around the place are very good too - photos and such- that you can have a think about to keep the mind active. Sounds like they've caught it pretty early on.

[Odsox]

Life's a bitch eh Eddy ?
I've been there, done that, memory tests repeatedly taking 7 away from 100, remembering two words you were told at the start, etc.
I don't have Alzheimer's, but I do have a similar fairly benign brain disorder that I have had to learn to live with.
One thing that has been a boon to me is my mobile phone, I have many alarms set to tell me to do all the important things .. for instance I lost 2 lots of chicken to foxes or mink purely because I forgot to shut them up at night, now I get a "reminder" every evening.
My memory never was impressive, now it's downright abysmal. The worst thing in my case is my diminishing vocabulary, I totally forget words, very often half way through a sentence, which is as equally frustrating as it is embarrassing.

There is one benefit though, you can watch the same films and programs on TV over and over again and each time it's like watching them for the first time, cos you've totally forgotten the plot.

[Green Aura]

totally forgotten the plot.

Some might think I did that years ago!

[red]

sorry to hear that Eddie - gad you have got in with early treatment to help. and thanks very much for passing the info on.

[Nomada]

Sorry to hear that. I'm glad it's been caught early, that's the key to stopping most things getting any worse.

[mrsflibble]

so sorry eddie, but thanks for the information.

[southeast-isher]

I'm glad you are getting this looked at Eddy. My Nan has severe dementia - unfortunately the medication didn't seem to be around when she was diagnosed and it wouldn't do her too much good at this stage. Wishing you all the best.

[noplasticbags]

Dear Eddy,

I've been "lurking" on this site for a while, but have now signed up so I can reply to you. I'm sorry to hear your news. My dad had Alzheimer's almost 20 years ago, and I'm sure things have improved greatly. However, as your brain scan has come back clear, please ensure that they are testing for everything else, and not just deciding that you are of a certain age, that this is the only reason for the memory problems. There are many other illnesses and particularly vitamin deficiencies which can present with similar symptoms to the early stages.
Best wishes
L

[Milims]

I've just remembered something - my dad has a seriously bad memory and always has, although now it's growing worse withage and illness. He has been examined, scanned and tested and they found no evidence of Alzheimers. What they have found is that it is linked with he fact that he was several long operations as a child and the anaesthetic caused of damage to him memory function. Added to that he was in hospital for much of his childhood and therefore missout on his education and simply never learned how to remember things.

[growingthings]

So glad you've caught it early.

I live with 'a potentially fatal genetic disorder' ( that's how the books put it!) and I know that my daughter who I unknowingly passed it to has a much better potential for a normal life / lifespan than I do as she was diagnosed at 4 instead of 30 like I was.

Knowing about things as early as possible seems to be the key for most things, well done for being so pragmatic about it, it's been nearly two years for me and Daisy and I have to admit it's only really just sunk in!

Lorna x

[MuddyWitch]

Nowt usefull to add, but wanted to let you know you're thought of very highly in the Muddy household

MW