My sister told me recently that she had learned from our aunt that our grandmother had shown signs of Alzheimer’s Disease in her early 60’s. That’s where I am now, age-wise! Yikes—suddenly each instance of forgetting a word seems ominous. The saving grace is that this aunt is in her 90’s, her sisters are almost that old and my great aunt lived to 101!
Reality check
- A certain amount of forgetting is normal and age related, not dementia or Alzheimer’s. My many friends who are my age or older all have the same issue. Forgetting the word “fork” is OK; forgetting what a fork is for is an issue.
- Many of us take medications that can affect our memory and/or concentration. For instance, my Rheumatoid Arthritis regimen includes Methotrexate, a chemotherapy drug that can cause what many call “brain fog”. I can attest to this—in the day or two after taking this once a week medication, I am often head-achy, foggy and just plain slow mentally. Hard to describe, but if you have it, you know it.
- Other diseases and factors can cause memory problems:
- Neurological diseases such as Chronic Fatigue, Multiple Sclerosis, etc.
- Diabetes
- Lack of sleep
- Depression
- Stress
- Menopause
- Poor nutrition
- My grandmother did not become truly “lost” until her early 70’s. I lived with her when she was 72 and she was finally needing constant care and attention. A lovely woman who once could cook for 15 people on a moment’s notice suddenly could not make dinner for herself.
