Anosognesia

sunshine5

DH has mild Dementia, gets angry when I say he has memory problems.

How should I behave? How can I help him?

Does MET therapy help? Memory enhancement therapy 

Anyone going thru this?

Rick4407

This is a one of the first challenges of dementia.  In the early stages when my DW had memory issues I never pointed them out.  I always would sympathize by saying we're both getting a little forgetful.  I worked at being supportive by trying to anticipate times she was likely to have a memory lapse and step in to remind her subtly.  

Anosognosia is the single kind element of the dementia journey for sufferer.  It lets the person skip the recognition that they are slowly losing all their past.  I can imagine nothing worse than spending the final 10 years of your life knowing all the memories of your whole life are gone.  

It's a challenge to be supportive and it only gets more challenging.  Good luck, Rick

Ed1937

Rick has it right. Don't tell him he has problems. Be supportive as much as possible.

Stuck in the middle

I don't think MET would be of much help if he has AD.  His brain is physically deteriorating, and exercises aren't likely to be beneficial.  My wife used to enjoy sudoku puzzles, but she went to easier and easier puzzles.  The last book of them has sat untouched in plain sight for months.

I have gradually taken over our lives.  I started with money and driving and take over more and more as time goes on.  I am sorry you are joining us on this path.

Paris20

Sunshine, I’m sorry to say that there is no way to get your husband to understand what is happening. Anasognosia is a bizarre condition to deal with from a caregiver’s perspective. We see the deterioration so clearly, so sadly and yet our LO is oblivious to it all. 

I read that if someone were to tell you that your memory is bad, that you need help, that your cognitive abilities are fading, you’d be insulted and likely tell that individual she’s wrong. That’s how your husband feels. That’s how my husband feels. My husband thinks his mother is still alive. He cannot say who the President is. He does not know what year it is or whether it’s summer or winter. Words escape him. I once asked him if he’s bothered by not remembering things. He told me he’s perfectly fine. He truly thinks nothing is wrong.

All I can add is that we have to learn to accept anasognosia as a fact of our lives, work with it or work around it. Values that we took for granted…telling the truth, trying to correct a problem, or even righting a wrong become unreachable goals that we must accept. There’s no correcting it. On the other hand, it’s a gift to the person with dementia. He knows nothing about what’s happening and never will.

Ed1937

This is my take on anosognosia. If the mail carrier asked you if you were a diabetic, and you told him/her you were not, but he said he wanted you to take insulin shots every day, what would you tell him? EXACTLY!! Why would you? The mail carrier is not a doctor, and you are not a diabetic. The person with anosognosia feels the same way as you did with the mail carrier. And just as sure there is nothing wrong at all.

Vitruvius

Every morning I floss and brush DW’s teeth. She stands and accepts this as though it were the way we always did it, she acts as though this is perfectly normal, that she is perfectly normal. This is anosognosia as well. 

Pat6177

Someone recently posted this link. Sorry I can’t remember who posted. But I found it really helped me to understand anosognosia better. And there were some good suggestions for trying to deal with it.

https://youtu.be/VRPNpocQC5A

I hope the link works. If not, go to you tube and do a search for Dementia Whisperer anosognosia. It’s the video with Hegwood Law Firm.

My DH was diagnosed in 7-2020. His anosognosia has gotten more pronounced as his AD has progressed. 

sunshine5

Thankyou so much. It was very helpful.

I have been trying to get some therapy for DH, he says he doesn’t need it!

It seems I am worried and bothered and he is watching tv, as he knows nothing is wrong!

So hard on the caregiver! They need to come with a pill or treatment for anosognosia!

Stuck in the middle

My wife is among the 20% who know they are "losing their marbles" as she puts it.  Makes it easier for me, maybe not so much for her.

Bob in LW

Stuck in the middle wrote:

My wife is among the 20% who know they are "losing their marbles" as she puts it.  Makes it easier for me, maybe not so much for her.

My SO is also in the 20%. She is well aware of her short-term memory loss but has a tendency to minimize it at times. She remembers when she handled all of her business affairs and gets depressed when she considers how much of her independence has been lost. She often asks me the same question several times a day and I have learned that it is best to answer it patiently and not indicate that she has asked it before. When I read about what others in this forum are experiencing, however, I realize that my problems pale by comparison.

Stuck in the middle

Frustration.  Grief.  Fear.

I suspect anosognosia is easier, for the PWD.  But I can't really know.