At Peace

Mom passed late last night. Her body has now been reunited with her soul. That's how I feel. Mom's soul departed as soon as she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease. Certainly the woman who raised me ceased to exist 10+ years ago. So mom's passing is a long-awaited blessing.

I want to share some of mom's journey in the hope it will help others be better prepared. Mom started having memory problems in 1999 at age 68. She was officially diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease in 2002. After suffering through mom's bouts of aggression, depression, anger, and paranoia for seven years, dad agreed to place mom in memory care in 2009.

Thanks to the security of a locked environment and daily socialization, for the most part, mom was able to enjoy life to the best of her ability for roughly two years. Then, suddenly, mom could no longer walk and was moved to the medical floor.

Mom was placed on hospice in October 2011 because she began to lose weight. But, despite two bouts of flu, back to back, in January 2012, mom rebounded and no longer qualified for hospice by May 2012.

Then, in February 2013, mom had a presumed stroke and was placed on hospice, again. She lost strength in her right side, couldn't talk or feed herself, and slept most of the day. But, by August, she no longer qualified for hospice due to an eight pound weight gain.

Within a couple of days, however, the disqualification was retracted. For no real reason other than an Alzheimer's Disease decline, mom began eating less, pocketing food, and drooling. On September 16, mom stopped eating and drinking. Mercifully, she passed seven days later on September 22.

At age 62, mom had emergency quadruple bypass. The surgeon gave her no more than eight more years. Despite exercise and a healthy diet, mom was never able to get her cholesterol under 200 and her blood pressure was always a little high. Nevertheless, mom did not die of a fatal stroke or heart attack. Instead, Alzheimer's Disease ultimately took her life at age 82.

To our knowledge, no one else in the family has had or has Alzheimer's Disease. Dad is a healthy 83-year-old who swims six days a week and cooks healthy meals for himself seven days a week. I pray I've pulled more from dad's gene pool than mom's.

God bless all those currently on their own Alzheimer's Disease journey. I pray there's at least a glimpse of a cure in my lifetime.