When I First Realized My Mother Had Early Onset Alzheimers
My mother had anticipated a bus tour to the west coast for months in advance. She’d booked her ticket, got her insurance in order and had her bag packed. She drove herself to the pick up point. I had no worries that she was going to have a great trip with an old friend from school.
Three days into the trip, I got a phone call from the tour guide. My mom had had a diabetic episode while on the ferry to Vancouver Island and she was now in the hospital. They were running a full battery of tests to determine if something else was wrong. She would not be able to continue with the tour. To say I was shocked, was an understatement.
My brother and I scrambled to find airline tickets, hotel rooms and get time off work. We bartered with the hospital for an extra day, as she had no one to care for her
(her friend had returned home already) and we were not confident if left to her own defences that she could manage.
On arrival we would learn that her travelling partner had left due to the stress of caring for my mother from the beginning of the trip. She hadn’t been eating at the correct times for her diabetes and had a severe case of diarrhea that required someone to help her.
Once she was turned over to our care, it became apparent why my mother had ended up in this situation. She was unable to negotiate the airport or where she needed to be, mostly following my brother. We arrived home safe and sound, but this incident became the first of many where it was evident that my mother was dealing with early on-set Alzheimers.
What stood out the most was the lack of executive functioning. These are the mental skills needed to cope in the world. She looked to those around her to provide guidance and direction to go about what we would consider simple problems or tasks like getting through the airport or finding a cab.
I’m convinced we wouldn’t have found out about her weakening health had she not gone on the trip. In her own home, our small town and familiar people and places she was able to manage just fine, but put into an unfamiliar environment, with mostly strangers it magnified her issues to the point that she was unable to function independently.
This mishap turned out to be a gift. Due to the hospital’s diligent work we discovered that at some point my mother may have had a small stroke, that her magnesium levels were low, and that she was dehydrated. The CT scan revealed that part of her brain was not showing the proper amount of activity and that this could be a sign that she was experiencing the beginnings of Alzheimers.
If a parent has trouble negotiating activities outside of their normal environment, pay attention. It may be the beginning signs of early onset Alzheimers.