Welcome!!!

[SusanJ]

It's the hardest thing, when your loved one doesn't believe the diagnosis. Denial seems to be pretty common. My husband and I are going through that with his sister. But who knows, maybe we would feel the same way faced with the same news.

When I had these issues with my dad, I made health stuff about me. That working with the doctor to rule out problems would make ME feel better. It might work, because you're not forcing the issue, just expressing your concern, about ruling out possible health problems, out of love.

Stavia, our primer author, suggests to start simple with blood test. Her usual list includes: Hba1c, B12, homocysteine, D3, lipids, TSH, CRP, and fasting insulin. These will give you a good place to start to see where to focus your energy. Once you get some results, come back and post so we can help you interpret what you're seeing.

[Jan]

Good suggestion, SusanJ, to present the idea as something his wife can do for him.

If you have any prior lab results, cutbankid, especially any fairly recent ones, it might help to take a look at those. They might suggest a pattern, or a clear direction to start with. (For instance, if her HbA1c has been tested, and is high.) The suggestions in the Primer are excellent to start implementing right away, and they will benefit the health of just about anyone - so you don't have to "label" the changes as something to do with Alzheimer's.

[circular]

It's the hardest thing, when your loved one doesn't believe the diagnosis. Denial seems to be pretty common. My husband and I are going through that with his sister. But who knows, maybe we would feel the same way faced with the same news.

Often this only looks like denial or an emotional response but is actually that in some AD patients they are just unable to evaluate themselves. The part of the brain that would hold awareness that they have a problem can be affected. A possibility to consider anyway. I've seen this with my LO all along.

[SusanJ]

How true, circ. We really don't know all that is going on in another's brain. I've also read that the NO response is just the only way that folks with AD seem to exert some control over things that they no longer comprehend.

Does your LO refuse to go to / believe their doctors? It does seem a common challenge in caregiving.

[circular]

She goes to her doctors willingly (grew up with the respect professional authority mantra), but for various reasons unique to her situation she's only aware she has some "memory issues"; ie, telling her the full truth is contraindicated so she doesn't ever hear it. This may help others ... just forget the diagnosis and focus on how the neurologist is monitoring a little forgetfulness and making recommendations so it doesn't get worse. That might sit much better.

[cutbankid]

I just read (mostly) the primer. Excellent!! You do a great job steering between the potholes and canyons of different opinions. Well done. Now I have to go back to see what I read and check out some of the links, etc.
My wife's well-along with AD, though still recognizes people, but is quite dependent. And 81. She's doctor-averse, hates blood tests. And has a severe itch problem. I broached the idea of going to see her doctor (hasn't seen for 10 months) to find out what's causing the itch, maybe take a few blood tests.
She doesn't warm at all to idea of AD, so we don't talk about it. But I did have Bredesen's book lying around and I told her it was interesting.
So if she goes to her doctor, and given she doesn't like giving samples, which of the blood tests do you think would be most important for her.

[circular]

Just stumbled on this recent paper:

Being unaware of memory loss predicts Alzheimer's disease, new study shows

[slacker]

Just stumbled on this recent paper:

Being unaware of memory loss predicts Alzheimer's disease, new study shows

So I'm either safe, hyper-aware, or paranoid?

[Kitabel]

I wish that awareness hypothesis played out in our family. My mother clearly has dementia, and is acutely aware of the "empty bubbles in her mind." My grandfather often complained about "this d**n memory of mine!" as he descended into AD. On the other hand, my aunt and her caregiver/husband either denied it or simply were too embarrassed to talk about it, so it was a taboo subject in their household. So who knows...

[jolicoeur]

Hi Kitabel

Awareness is good. It helps stepping out a moment to question ourselves.
Welcome to the forum Kitabel ! This is a great place to be where you can get lots of information and support. One of the best places to start is the primer. Here's the link: viewtopic.php?f=33&t=1418

Everyone's experience is different and you will see that here. Also, the primer takes you to places that really do help in reversing cognitive decline.
In addition to the forum, The End of Alzheimer's book recently came out. It's by Dr Dale Bredesen - a leading pioneer in the field. It is written for lay people and easy to understand.