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Newly diagnosed with Fahr’s Dementia

Hello all, I (59 female) am very happy to have found this group and hope to gain and give support. I was diagnosed with Fahr’s Dementia following a mental health crisis. My once stable anxiety and depression symptoms increased terribly which were accompanied by continued difficulty with my work (Speech Pathologist) and driving. I was falling, dropping things, getting lost, having trouble dressing and was having issues with memory and confusion. I learned that I have a calcium buildup on my basil ganglia causing trouble with motor skills, cognition and mental health. What once defined me, my work, my intelligence and my sense of humor is leaving me. This is devastating. Because I am the primary breadwinner, we must sell our home….our lives are quickly changing and it is sad.

With this, how can I learn to live happily with this ever changing new normal? How do I stop crying?

Nancy

Comments

  • Iris L.
    Iris L. Member Posts: 4,540
    Legacy Membership 2500 Comments 500 Likes 250 Care Reactions
    Member
    edited November 2024

    Welcome to our online support group, Nancy. It is always devastating to receive a diagnosis of a dementia. But there are ways to soften the journey. There is much to learn. Fahr's Dementia is new to me, but the approach to dealing with it will be basically the same as for dealing with the other dementias.

    Please don't sell your home or take major steps without consulting with people experienced in living with the dementias. You can learn a lot from the members here and from the Alzheimer's Association. I don't know if you have made contact with Fahrbeyond.org.

    If you are still working, can you make use of work accommodations? Or have you already begun to apply for disability benefits? There are steps to take that can help you.

    Iris

  • TheSteven
    TheSteven Member Posts: 22
    Tenth Anniversary 10 Comments
    Member

    Hi Thomasian,

    I replied to BreeAnn yesterday but never go to read and respond to anyone else.

    Welcome, I was diagnosed with with younger onset ALZ when I was 56 in March 2014. My wife and I eventually determined in my case that it was due to the mercury in my numerous amalgam fillings. I stopped my ALZ progression and reversed most of my symptoms after removal of those fillings at an iaomt.org approved dentist. I documented my journey on my blog which includes the books, steps and links to web sites showing information about the dangers of amalgam and how to detox the amalgam. https://alzconnected.org/home/leaving?allowTrusted=1&target=https%3A%2F%2Fthestevenalztreatment.blogspot.com%2F2015%2F07%2Fstrategy-results-and-log-thus-far.html

    Recently I also heard of others with ALZ who reversed their symptoms by doing fecal transplants from a spouse who did not have ALZ into their colon which helped populate the ALZ spouse with the necessary microbes into their gut microbiome so that it effected changes in the ALZ brain microbiome. There are some free episodes available now to watch regarding the gut microbiome available. The previous series might be available at goodnesslover.com but you can watch some of the free episodes here that might give you an idea as to what to expect https://alzconnected.org/home/leaving?allowTrusted=1&target=https%3A%2F%2Fgutimmunesolution.com%2Ffreescreening%2Fday3-star6sv5t%2F

    Episode 6 talks about how microbes and partially digested proteins escaping from a leaky gut can lead to Alzheimer's and Parkinson's among other diseases. I suggest you watch that. I won't explain all that here since those doctors do a much better job.

    I hope this helps and give you hope

Commonly Used Abbreviations


DH = Dear Husband
DW= Dear Wife, Darling Wife
LO = Loved One
ES = Early Stage
EO = Early Onset
FTD = Frontotemporal Dementia
VD = Vascular Dementia
MC = Memory Care
AL = Assisted Living
POA = Power of Attorney
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