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Hi Walt. Was your diagnosios completed? It must be hard if you are going through this alone. At least there is this group that can be accessed through your computer.
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I hope that your three children are not upset because of your condition.
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I was diagnosed with EOAD in June of 2008. Taking Aricept and Namenda along with an anti-depressant and mood stablizer. Seems to be working.
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Hey, keep in touch.
Tom
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Hi Walt:
I am an adult child of a father who had Alz. Whether you tell your children now that you have dementia or they find out later, it will be upsetting for them. You cannot avoid that. As your condition advances you are going to need the love and support of your children. The more time you give them to learn about your condition the better it will be for them and you. Knowledge is power. There will come a point where they will have to make decisions on your behalf. The more time they have to seek support and knowledge on how to do this the easier it will be on them. They obviously love you a great deal. You'll do them no favours by keeping them in the dark. My guess is they already have suspicions. Let them help you as you probably helped them when they were younger. You are unlikely to regret this decision and they will be greatful you trust them to care for you when you will need them most. You cannot shoulder this condition alone and they will, in all liklihood resent not being informed if you exclude them from being allowed to learn and help you in your greatest hour of need. While you are still of sound mind you will need to choose someone to handle your money, make medical decisions, and you'll need to do a Will. Perhaps one of your children would be best suited to do this on your behalf? Ask yourself which one do you trust the most to take care of your money, health decisions and once you pass on, your Will and make sure they are willing to do so? Being a Caregiver of someone with Dementia is a big job. You can't not tell them or assume they'll work it out when the time comes. That Caregiver needs to be on board and educate themselves on what they'll need to do when the time comes that you can no longer make decisions for yourself. You seem like an intelligent man. Give your kids as much opportunity to learn about your condition and how to deal with it so they can help you and help themselves to cope as your disease progresses. My two cents. ~Child of Dad with Alz.
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