Mom forgot me, yet remembered a family dog from 70 years ago?
The way Alzheimer’s forms in the brain, as tangles and plaque, determines how it progresses. At first it was difficult for me to understand that Mom could forget me yet remember a family dog from 70 years earlier.
Memories are formed in a particular order from the first memories after birth until death. When tangles and plaques begin forming in the brain, they follow the exact same order in reverse. Current memories are forgotten first, and then the forgetting moves backwards wiping out all memories like an eraser on a chalkboard.
Alzheimer’s begins in the hippocampus. As the hippocampus degrades from the formation of these tangles and plaque, the formation of new memories fails. It is not certain how long the plaques and tangles linger there, it could be 5 years, 10 or even 20. But eventually they will begin to spread and spread throughout the temporal, parietal and frontal lobes of the cerebral cortex. Eventually, sticky plaques cover most of the thinking brain. In this process tens of millions of synapses dissolve away.
In 1980 New York University neurologist Barry Reisberg realized that the Alzheimer’s-childhood analogy is not just anecdotal–that it could be measured. He documented these observations in comparison charts. The sequence of abilities gained and lost nearly perfectly mirror each other.
This chart may help to understand what is happening as the Alzheimer’s patient’s memory fails, in reverse of how it was formed in the beginning. (Copyright David Shenk, “The Forgetting”)
Child’s Development
1-3 months Can hold head up
2-4 months Can smile
6-10 months Can sit without assistance
1 Year Can walk without Assistance
1 Year Can speak one word
15 months Can speak 5-6 words
2-4 years Can control bowels/urine
4 years Use toilet without assistance
4-5 years Adjust bath water
4-5 years Can dress them-self
5-7 years Can select proper clothing
8-12 years Can handle simple finances
12+ years Can hold job/prepare meals,etc.
Alzheimer’s Disease Progression
Stage Ability Lost
1 No difficulty at all
2 Some memory issues affect job/home
3 Difficulty maintaining a job performance
4 Can no longer hold job/prepare meals/handle personal finances
5 Can no longer select proper clothing for season
6a Can no longer dress self
6b Can no long adjust bath water temperature
6c Can no longer use toilet w/out assistance
6d Urinary incontinence
6e Fecal incontinence
7a Speech limited to 6 or so words per day
7b Speech limited to 1 word
7c Can no longer walk w/out assistance
7d Can no longer sit up w/out assistance
7e Can no longer smile
7f Can no longer hold head up
I agree that this analogy is sad and devastating to see. But I do believe that it helps to form a new understanding of what our loved ones or other sufferers of Alzheimer’s Dementia are actually going through, to understand how they feel and what they are enduring. Rather than growing angry when they don’t remember something we just said, or re-tell the same story over and over again, we can learn to be more accepting of their predicament.
As caregivers, perhaps we can strive to feel more compassion when they behave childishly rather than as the adult that we remember. By viewing our loved one as reverting back to childhood in behavior and mentalities, we can establish a more loving formula for their care, lower our own expectations for what they can do and what they can not do.
Much of this article is taken from David Shenk’s book, “The Forgetting”
I’ll be forever grateful for all the understanding it gave me while my Mom was struggling on her return to childhood–
You can scroll down and Read the first Chapter of this informative book for FREE!
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From Publishers Weekly
With grace and precision, Shenk (Data Smog), a journalist and occasional NPR commentator, presents a lyric biography of Alzheimer’s, “a condition specific to humans and as old as humanity.” At one time, doctors thought senility, or dementia, was an inevitable fact of growing older. Now they know that Alzheimer’s is a specific, formidable disease that threatens to reach epidemic proportions within the next 50 years. The disease is named for the neurologist who, in 1906, first noticed, in the brain of an autopsied patient, the telltale plaques and tangles that strangle the brain’s neurons.
Shenk presents a thoughtful and complex rumination on many aspects of Alzheimer’s, including anecdotes about the memory loss experienced by Ronald Reagan, Ralph Waldo Emerson and E.B. White. He recounts the tales of caregivers, many of whom become clinically depressed and who, along with physicians, draw an analogy between the developing skills of a child and the decrease in cognitive ability that besets Alzheimer’s patients. {For More Information}
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First Chapter for FREE
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Alzheimer’s is a terrible disease to watch a loved one live through. Visual clarity has been linked to increased cognition and decreased progression of Alzheimer’s disease. Clear vision is often lacking in aging patients due to limited accessibly when mobility becomes difficult. Eye exams are highly recommended for patients with early symptoms of Alzheimer’s.
This was very interesting, Dr. Calderon. I had never associated clarity of eye-sight with Alzheimer’s. But now that you mention it, I do remember my Mom complaining about her eyeglasses. I didn’t realize it could actually be her vision since she already wore glasses.
In hindsight, I think I should have had her eyes re-examined for her eyeglasses.
Very informative info, Thank You–
~Sandy
glad to help. 🙂 Most people don’t know about this so don’t beat yourself up about it.
and eye care is generally overlooked in elderly, Alzheimer’s, and Home bound patients.
We are just starting to tell this story now as the baby boomers come of age.
I thank blogs like this one for helping spread the word.
All the best.
P.S.
http://aspirehs.com/cataract-surgery-benefits-alzheimers-patients/
here is a full article relating to this topic of Alzheimer’s and connection to vision.
Fascinating Article. I’ve Posted it to our Facebook page already. My mom passed away 5 years ago, but I always thought her hearing had a little to do with her dementia also. She stopped wearing her hearing aid and could make little sense out of any conversation, and that began a quick descent into cognitive decline.
It amazes me. I rarely go an entire week that I don’t learn something new about Alzheimer’s.
Thank you so much!
~Sandy
Keep up the good fight.
My Grandmother, grandaunt and aunt lived with us, each individually until they passed with complications, and I know now, that we could have done more bc we didn’t think about giving any of them glasses or eye exams either. It’s only now that realize how much potential benefit could have been had on their well being had we done so. Dementia patients can’t verbalize the decrease and that blurriness can be a source of frustration for them, and a reason for them to disengage propelling them further into dementia.
I can talk about this a while… I digress . Glad to help 🙂
Vital Information, I say!
Thank you,
~Sandy