Alzheimer’s disease is unfortunately one of the most common diseases amongst people that are coming of age. Alanna Shaikh, a global health and development specialist, discusses the growing disease in her Ted Talk: “How I’m preparing to get Alzheimer’s.” (Ted.com) She discusses her experience watching her father’s memory deteriorate as a result of his Alzheimer’s disease. she addresses the fact that most people are not prepared for Alzheimer’s because of their denial. She confesses, “the big numbers of people who get it, [dementia] frighten us. And, because of that fear, we do one of two things. We go into denial, or we decide that we are going to prevent dementia. I’m looking for a third way.” (Alanna Shaikh, ‘How I’m Preparing to get Alzheimer’s’) This leads to the main idea: We can continue life after Alzheimers through these certain techniques and through correct preparation. Alanna then describes the different activities that she is doing to prepare herself for this disease, rather than possessing denial, and still falling victim to it. There are many different ways to prepare for Alzheimers. Living with this disease involves mostly muscle memory. Therefore, performing activities that enhance muscle memory can assist you in preparation. (http://www.alzfdn.org) This involves perfecting many different hands-on tasks to generate the memory. Also, another way of preparation would be to attach certain memories to the senses, specifically sounds, smells, and tastes. Some of the major physical side effects of Alzheimers to prepare for, are muscle tremors, loss of mobility, and loss of balance. (http://www.alzfdn.org) One should improve their sense of balance, allowing control over the body when infected with Alzheimer’s. Lastly, to p...
... middle of paper ...
...person, due to the confusion that comes with the disease. It is hard to live with, as documented by many, however, if people are prepared, they will not struggle as much as they would if they hadn’t taken these precautions. These tactics are extremely important, and Alanna Shaikh makes this clear through her Ted Talk. Many people can learn and benefit from these ideas, making it a very useful presentation. Alzheimers is a controlling disease, but by preparing for it, it can be defined.
Works Cited
http://www.thirdage.com/hc/c/living-with-alzheimers-disease
http://mariashriver.com/blog/2012/09/what-alzheimers-disease-feels-life-stephen-hume/
http://blog.timesunion.com/healthcare/psychologist-with-alzheimers-feels-his-mind-slowly-melting/2853/
http://www.alzfdn.org/AboutAlzheimers/definition.html
http://www.harmonyadstudy.com/?gclid=CIf77_OxmbsCFcFj7AodWSEAqg
Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wall-paper" is an excellent story on several levels. It works as a suspenseful thriller about the effects of mental illness. It also serves to make several points about feminism and the pervailing attitudes of her time.
The article “Cracking the Alzheimer’s code” by Linda Marsa discusses the history, discoveries and advancements for Alzheimer’s disease. The discovery of Alzheimer’s disease was revealed through a German physician named Alois Alzheimer. Alzheimer first discovered Alzheimer’s in the year 1901 while he was interviewing a mentally Ill patient named Auguste Dexter. The beginning of his discovery was due to the fact that Dexter was exhibiting uncontrollable behaviors that included jealously, screaming, confusion and paranoia. After Dexter had passed away, Alzheimer saw this as an opportunity to examine her brain under a microscope in thin pieces. To Alzheimer’s surprise, he discovered two abnormal substances on brain slices that were called amyloid
performance that involves, but is not limited to, a loss in at least 2 of the
...sion of the disease. In addition, the risk factors and preventive measures are quite clear. These can help those who are unaware of what Alzheimer’s disease is or how it progresses. Future studies may prove to be beneficial in preventing the occurrence of Alzheimer’s, or at least the severity of its’ progression. Informing people of this disease, the risk factors, and preventive measures at a younger age, can only prove beneficial in the decrease or possible elimination of this physically and mentally altering disease. Living a healthy life now can only increase your chances of having a healthier life in old age.
Alzheimer’s disease is a form of dementia which is a brain disorder that impairs mental functioning. Dementia attacks the part of the brain which controls memory, language, and thought. It makes everyday tasks like remembering to brushing your teeth, or to pay your bills next to impossible to do, which is why so many people who are diagnosed with this disease are in complete care. This disease has different phases, the first being slight forgetfulness and then the persons emotions may heighten as well as language impairment, violent outbursts, loss of bladder control and from there it keeps getting worse until complete dysfunction of the brain occurs and eventually death, which most of the time is the result of infection.
Alzheimer's Disease Introduction to Alzheimer's Alzheimer's disease is a progressive, degenerative disease of the brain. It was first described by the German neuropathologist Alois Alzheimer (1864-1915). in 1905. This disease worsens with advancing age, although there is no evidence. that it is caused by the aging process.
Alzheimer's disease is a neurological disorder which kills the brain cells, causing memory loss and cognitive decline. This leads to severe psychological impairments which changes how people think, behave and other complications such as paranoia, disorientation and unprovoked aggression. These psychological impairments reduce people’s functional ability and therefore reduce their quality of life.
Alzheimer’s disease, named after Dr. Alois Alzheimer, is a disease that is on the rise in America and the rest of the world. People should learn as much as they want about this disease, because as you age, your chances of becoming an Alzheimer’s Disease, or AD, patient increases. It is estimated that approximately 3 percent of Americans between the ages of 65 and 74 have the illness, and more than half of all people over age 85 have the ailment.
Alzheimer’s disease is one of the most prevalent diseases in America and in the world at this point in time and the number of cases is only increasing. Symptoms of Alzheimer’s might include a decline in mental capacity, confusion, and forgetting how to do simple tasks. The disease in not limited to the older generation but is far more prevalent. There is no existing cure for Alzheimer’s and only a few medications that can mildly treat the disease but they vary from patient to patient and are not very affective. Many people are now trying to focus on preventing the disease in its early stages. Some ways in which people do this is by pairing a healthy diet with both cognitive and physical exercises.
It is said that memory declines as people age, and this can be just a natural part of life. However, in many cases as people grow older, they develop a mental disorder known as Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s is a disease that causes problems with memory, thinking, and overall behavior, and progressively becomes a bigger problem. Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia and is a very common disease in people over the age of 65. This terminal disease puts tremendous stress on the victim and the victim’s family. A cure for Alzheimer’s has yet to be discovered; however, through healthy and constant use of the brain and the aid of certain drug treatments, Alzheimer’s disease can be both naturally and medically prevented.
A myth about Alzheimer disease says that nothing can be done about the disease. This is not true. Much can be done to assist the person with Alzheimer’s disease to maintain the highest possible level of functioning as long as possible and in providing the highest quality of life.
...hed and streamlined to allow for earlier diagnosis. In the case of tertiary prevention, the pharmaceutical companies have a huge financial incentive to create a cure for Alzheimer’s but that is not enough. More government funded research should be dedicated towards finding methods to delay or cure Alzheimer’s disease. The baby boomer generation has already entered their 60’s. As people live longer, as a result of new treatments for common killers such as heart disease and cancer, the chances that they will succumb to Alzheimer’s increases. Failing to find preventative or curative measures will be costly. On a personal level, Alzheimer’s disease slowly attacks cognitive function-the higher thought processes; individuals degenerate into infantile dependents. The cost of caring for increasing numbers of such dependents will be a burden on both family and society.
It is inevitable that eventually each of us will grow old and begin to face more and more health problems as our age rises. Elderly people are challenged by many illnesses and diseases that unfortunately, are incurable. One disease that becomes more common as people age is Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s a common cause and a form of dementia and can severely damage a patient’s cognitive functions and can ultimately cause death. Living with Alzheimer’s disease can be saddening for both the sufferer and the family. Family and friends will find it very hard to cope when a loved one begins slipping away and losing memory of who they are.
In conclusion, Alzheimer’s disease affects millions of people worldwide. It strips people of, not only, their memories, but of their dignity and independence as well. It is also a huge drain on the families of the people with the disease. This disease is deadly and there is no known cure. We can only hope that in the future scientists find a cure for this horrible disease.
Doctors and researchers are confident that there will soon be a treatment for Alzheimer's. There have been millions who have died or who have progressed too far in their disease. The symptoms` of Alzheimer’s Disease are very hard for the sufferer to deal with. They do not want to rely on a family member to take care of themselves because something is wrong with them. Alzheimer's is a very complex disease. This why scientists have still not found any cure for it. People with Alzheimer's suffer for almost twenty to twenty five years before their death.The worse thing about this disease is the patient does not even remember their family or friends. They also do not release what the actual meaning of life is by the time they die. People suffering from Alzheimer's are emotionally dead long before the physically die.