memory loss

Maru

DH, diagnosed ES ALZ in June has been losing words for some time now, and that seems to be accelerating. This week he lost memory of two of his life events, one the wedding of our 2nd daughter some years ago. Yesterday, he asked me what I was listening to (bible in a year with Fr. Mike). His comment: "that sounds benelevent (sp?). He finished this study last year and had no recall at all, not even of the voice. I was shocked. It was so out of the blue. Does this mean that his memory loss is accelerating or does it mean anything at all?

M1

Hi Maru. Hold on to your proverbial hat, you will be shocked at the things that are forgotten. My partner has lost our whole 30 year history, including my children and grandchildren, her beloved farm , her whole professional career. There have been times when she doesn’t know who I am. It will be painful, but it will help a little bit if you’re prepared for it.

Maru

It was just so shocking as to this point he has only forgotten words or misused words or even the occasional made up words. He is so slick at it that half of the time I don't even catch it. But, to forget walking his daughter down the aisle, that was a surprise.

psg712

I remember one of the events where the impact of my mom's memory loss really hit home for me. I was with my then-eight year old son at a park, and we were on the tennis court hitting balls. It was a beautiful day. I remember thinking that these are the "normal days" of his childhood that I want to remember forever. And then the thought struck me: I wonder if my mom remembers anything about when I was eight? The realization that she likely remembered little to none of my childhood stopped me in my tracks. That was three years ago. I'm sure that all of those memories are gone now, or distorted and incomprehensible to her. Dementia is such a thief!

fmb

I've also found that on very rare occasion DH will very briefly remember something that had been long forgotten. It is as though the brain synapses fire and receive accurately just for a moment. Beautiful when it happens, but not lasting.