Hello, I'm 20, and my dad has early onset
Alzheimer's disease. He was diagnosed
about 4 years ago, and it's almost to the
point where we might not be able to leave
him alone. I'm away at college right now,
and I know my mom has a tough time taking
care of him by herself for the most part.
She has to work, so he's at home by
himself for half the day some days. I know
she worries about him, as do I. This
summer I will be able to help out more,
and I'm glad I can be there for my dad. No
matter how much it hurts.
I guess I'm just wondering if there is
anyone who can relate? I have quite a few
friends, but they've never gone through
something like this so it's hard to relate
or talk about it to them.
My aunt also passed away a couple years
ago from this same disease at the age of
42. Her kids were 8 and 12 at the time.
That loss was hard enough. My grandpa also
passed away from it as did my great uncle
before I was born. I know early onset is
purely hereditary, and there's a 50/50
chance my brother or I will get it. It
scares me.
Again, can anyone relate?
<3
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jcottle11
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 31 May 2008 Posts: 6
To Shmoo Posted: 05-31-08 16:47pm
I'm most curious to know more about your
father's condition, as well as your aunt
and other relatives. Has any one of them
undergone genetic testing to determine if
there is a mutation of the presinilin 1
gene? Are you positively certain that all
of these relatives were formally diagnosed
with early onset Alzheimer's disease?
If you don't mind, please describe your
father's symptoms for me.
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This page was last updated on June 11, 2008
