Still in Practice Mode / Alzheimer's Journey

I was able to post yesterday, but I'm not sure how to do a second one and how it shows up. So, here is a copy/paste of my first babble on the old site. This will be a journal, for myself, to preserve memories and thoughts for future reference for me as my mind slides into the inevitable future with Alzheimer's and dementia. I was inspired by a blog that I read regularly, Too Young for Dementia (https://dementiaalzheimers.home.blog/). Gail has early onset, I have the plain old regular, take its time kind. That means that my symptoms don't show and people simply don't believe that I have Alzheimer's as my speech pathways have not yet been affected. Outsiders don't see the issues I have to deal with and family and close friends want to pretend that they are not losing me to this horrible disease. (This makes it doubly difficult as there is no one to share my fears with.)  

My goal in doing this blog is to show others with a similar diagnosis that we don't have to just give up and die. I intend to relearn everything that I can't remember or do any longer into the still working part of my brain.

Many years ago, way before I ever thought about Alzheimer's, I read a report of three aged brothers. Two of the brothers died quiet early of Alzheimer's, the third lived into his 90's. When he passed, an autopsy showed that his Alzheimer's was very advanced and he should have died years ago. Why? He was also a mathematician and continued to study and even write books up until the end. He did NOT give up.

I truly believe that my determination and willingness to work hard daily on learning new things will allow me the third brother's kind of life.

There is a lot of information out there but I have found that most of it caters to the caregivers. We, with the disease, are thought to be brain dead.....not yet, so don't put me in a box where you think we all sit in a chair staring into  space and drooling. We still can think, have feelings, have opinions. We have good days and bad days. Many of us try to keep a sense of humor when we do absolutely stupid things. I'm here to prove it all to you.

Everyone has to deal with something they didn't ask for. We all die eventually. Our purpose in life is to learn from everything that is thrown at us and gracefully (sometimes after a bit of a stumble) get up. I am getting up. I truly believe this challenge was given to me so that I might help to change the current perception of an Als. (Term used in the airport to let staff know that they're dealing with a potential wanderer, LOL!) Help cheer me on.

If anyone is reading this, I welcome you on my journey. I added Tarot as one of my "new to me" things to learn. So, like The Fool, I set myself along this tangled street with my tangled mind to find a new adventure.

I've found that doing a jigsaw puzzle daily helps to keep those brain pathways less clogged.