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The following is an excerpt from Recipes My Mother Alzheimer's Disease is the most common and best known type of irreversible dementia. Symptoms include loss of memory, difficulty with common, daily tasks, and mood and behavior changes. It affects both men and women, generally 65 years of age and older, although people in their forties, fifties, or early sixties may also be affected. At present it is estimated that over 43,000 people in the province of British Columbia and over 300,000 people in Canada suffer from dementia. About 64% of these people have Alzheimer's Disease. In the United States about four million people have Alzheimer's Disease. Alzheimer's Disease has a slow onset and in the early stages very few people recognize minor pauses in conversation or lapses in memory as signals of Alzheimer's. Family members may have difficulty specifying exactly when the problems began, and the symptoms may be present for many years before family and friends become concerned. In the early stages of the disease, the person is generally alert most of the time and may be aware that something is wrong, although he or she may deny there is a problem. Alzheimer's Disease affects a person's ability to function, affecting everything someone thinks, feels, and does. The disease affects a person's ability to remember information, remember friends and family, experience language problems, travel from one place to another in familiar areas, remember what day or time it is, plan and initiate normal, commonplace tasks, make decisions on safety issues and what to do in an emergency, difficulty eating, dressing, and bathing, and inability to control emotions. You will read about our battles with the Department of Motor Vehicles as we tried to get Mother's driver's license cancelled. You will read about the various tests Mother underwent as the doctors diagnosed her with Alzheimer's Disease. You will read about Mother joining a test study for a new drug Galantamine, which is hoped to slow the progression of Alzheimer's Disease and return some logistical skills to the patient. All this and great meals too! See the recipes Mother has in store for you. |
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Here are a few photos of Mother. Most of them were taken after she had the stroke and show her in the extended care residence where she lives. Prior to suffering from the stroke Mother played the piano beautifully, a real concert pianist. She played by ear and quickly picked up any song in addition to playing complicated classical pieces. As Alzheimer's Disease took over, her repertoire diminished to about three songs, but she constantly amazed the medical staff who were involved with her by sitting down and playing on a grand professional scale. The photo of Mother at the grand piano I took several years ago when I was taking a course in black and white photography and darkroom basics. The grand piano is now in my home, but I do not play it as well as Mother did. The photo with the pigeons was taken in Trafalgar Square, London in January 1998, about 8 months before Mother had the stroke. Alzheimer's Disease is well advanced and she has no recollection that she does not like birds. She did not like the budgies I owned as a child and whenever a bird dared to build a nest in our carport, she was out there with a broom knocking it down. |
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Christmas 2000 |
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Christmas 1999 |
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