Alzheimer's, that is. And Dementia. Losing our minds, literally.
Most people know memory loss is a normal part of aging. But the very real terror of the possibility of getting Alzheimer's is a bit of a secret among my women friends who are 50 and older. We joke about our memory gaps, in part to ease our fears. (CRS or "Can't Remember Shit" is a favorite acronym of mine). But it's not funny when we have to whisper to each other at a party, "What is her name again?" And then, "Yes! How could I forget that!" We commiserate, but secretly worry. Do I have IT.
Most of us are still working, in top form, at the peak of our careers. Yet we don't let on at work that we forgot a name, make detailed to-do lists, sometimes forget where we are going from one meeting to the next (my smart phone saves me), and that we didn't set up that promised meeting right away because we forgot to put it on the aforementioned to-do list. Is anyone noticing?
At home, we head into the kitchen, full of purpose, and then wonder why we walked into the kitchen once we get there. Oh yeah, to see what I need to get at the store. How could I forget, just like that? I have started repeating stories so often that I now try to ask people before I begin one, "Have I told you this story yet?" I'm only 55. I've always had a bad memory, but...
Each time someone our age is in the news with that dreaded diagnosis of Early Onset Dementia or Early Alzheimer's we collectively think, "Could I be next?" I was stunned when we learned of Pat Summitt's Early Onset Dementia diagnosis just this summer - the type that will lead to Alzheimer's. Summitt is the head women's basketball coach at the University of Tennessee and the most winning coach in college basketball history, men's or women's. And she is only 59. She looked fine last season. She bravely came out with her story, and says she is taking medication and doing memory exercises with the hope of coaching for a few more seasons, with the help of her staff. News accounts say symptoms included missed meetings and forgotten plays. That's all?! What else did she and others notice?
Do men my age worry like this? I don't hear them talking about it if they do. It's true that women are diagnosed with Alzheimer's at a higher rate then men, but it seems to be a woman's worry. I know a few women with simple memory loss symptoms who have made appointments with their doctors or even at memory loss clinics just to be sure it is nothing more than age. No one has come back yet with the diagnosis of Early Onset Dementia or the "Big A." But we are worried, even terrified. We know more than one of us will come back with the dreaded diagnosis some day. Please. Not me. Ever.
Summitt's courage in going public is a wake up call to those of us worrying and wondering. To take those little lapses seriously. To not ignore if normal memory loss is getting worse and starting to interfere with how we function. To know the symptoms and get checked out.
An estimated 5.4 million Americans of all ages have Alzheimer’s disease in 2011. This figure includes 5.2 million people aged 65 and older, and 200,000 individuals under age 65 who have younger-onset Alzheimer’s. As we Baby Boomers age the percentages will continue to go up. (Source)
So it's okay to be worried, but we also need to be empowered with information. A great resource is the National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine. Learn more about Dementia from them here and about Alzheimer's here. And here is a great list of symptoms of Alzheimer's that includes a comparison to normal memory loss.
Okay, I'm pretty sure it's just a normal aging memory thing after reading that list.
Pretty sure.
