Memory loss

gf beranek

gf beranek

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God's country, North Coast
I ran into a friend today that I haven't seen in a few months. We chatted for a good time catching up on things. He told me that he has a total memory loss of every thing that happened from 2008 to 2011. He can remember faces of people he met in that time and whether he liked them or not, but nothing else. The primal instincts live strong. He said viewing photo albums does not even bring back memories of that time.

Our memories are all we got.

No need reply. This is just a heads up on how things like this keep popping up in our lives. Life is rich...
 
After contacting one of my best friends from high school, you know the kind of good buddy that you paled around with every day for years, he said that he couldn't remember me. I woke him up a little, but still... :(
 
My poor mother...85 years old now, and memory dementia is gathering strength in her. So sad, and no way to help her...have had to remove her telephone just this week. She was repeatedly calling a number from her distant past, more than 40 years ago, and unfortunately it now belongs to a man who dislikes his phone ringing at 2am or so, like 20 times a week...my sister and I have dealt with her lack of awareness of time for a few years now, but this is not something I can ignore.

I hate to cut her last easy contact with the outside world off, but I cannot see a choice...the victim threatens legal action...and I don't blame him.

I feel like a total shit.
 
Finding mine to be more not as good at it used to be.
Sorry to hear about your mom Burnam.
Mine is starting to forget things.. I see a horizon of fun coming.

What were we talking about?
 
Truth there, Jim. I've been at it since my father died, now it's almost 13 years. I'm tired, and hate feeling like that, too. After all, she and he nurtured me for far longer than that. I'll just keep on until the end; I neither have a choice, nor would feel right ignoring her need for my help.
 
I remember having guilty feelings about taking care of my Mother. It seemed like such a PITA at the time, but I did it with bells on and made my Mama smile. I'd love to still have those chores to do for her today. :(

My memory on OK, knock on redwood.
 
My best friend had a brain tumor removed.
Along with that went the memory of the most recent years, which meant that he had no idea who his wife and kids were.
That totally freaked her out, so since he remembered me well, having known me since the teen years, he moved in with my wife and me for the recovery period.

He had lost the memory of and the ability to do a lot of stuff.
We always used to enjoy cooking together, and I remember telling ihm to start peeling potatoes, only to find him at the sink, staring at a potato.
He told me,I had to show him what to do, as he had no idea of what to do to the strange lump of vegetable matter in his hand.

In about 3 months everything slowly returned to him and he could go back to first his wife and kids, then a bit later, his job.

1½ years later the tumor returned and killed him this time around.
 
Watching my FIL deteriorate has been quite hard on all of us. He says, or asks, the same things over and over and over. He tries to speak and you can tell it's right there, but then it's gone just that fast. It's a rough existence.

Mine hasn't been fairing much better it seems. I guess she and I have had some in depth conversations of which I remember nothing a couple days later! I've gotten to where I use the calendar in my phone for anything time sensitive and make notes in it for everything else.
 
My hat's off to those of you who are taking care of those who took care of you. There are many today who just put them out of sight and try to forget about them. Memory is precious. Great memory usually equals great intelligence too. I worked with a guy whose memory of numbers was unbelievable. Tell him an address, phone number or gate code, ask him a week later and he would nail it with near 100% accuracy. Me? Not so much. On the bright side, at least I don't have to worry about losing something I never had!
 
Such a difficult thing. . .

My fathers mother has been in a spiral of dementia and memory loss for over ten years now. It is difficult for her children, my aunts and uncles, as her collapse is total. I agree with those who feel that you must care for those who cared for you. At this point, she is living a terrible, unnatural existence. I can only imagine how terrifying it must be. You guys have my permission to put me down if it comes to that.
 
Sometimes the care giver gets so exhausted that they end up going before the one that was receiving the care.
 
Burnham said:
My poor mother...85 years old now, and memory dementia is gathering strength in her. So sad, and no way to help her...have had to remove her telephone just this week. She was repeatedly calling a number from her distant past, more than 40 years ago, and unfortunately it now belongs to a man who dislikes his phone ringing at 2am or so, like 20 times a week...my sister and I have dealt with her lack of awareness of time for a few years now, but this is not something I can ignore.

I hate to cut her last easy contact with the outside world off, but I cannot see a choice...the victim threatens legal action...and I don't blame him.

I feel like a total shit.
Click to expand...

Sounds tough Burnham. You'd think the fella could simply have blocked your mothers number no? Although I could see the concern that she'd just start calling someone else.

Dementia is one of my greatest fears, tough to make it so far and then not be able to remember the journey.
 
My mother just had her 75th today, she is suffering from Alzheimer, when she goes to the hospital she constantly warns me to check for my name in the newspaper, this is from the days of soviet east Europe, when they would publish the names of people who need to go to the 'police station for questioning'.
 
Limbrat said:
My hat's off to those of you who are taking care of those who took care of you. There are many today who just put them out of sight and try to forget about them. Memory is precious. Great memory usually equals great intelligence too. I worked with a guy whose memory of numbers was unbelievable. Tell him an address, phone number or gate code, ask him a week later and he would nail it with near 100% accuracy. Me? Not so much. On the bright side, at least I don't have to worry about losing something I never had!
Click to expand...

:lol: Yeah, same here.
 
woodworkingboy said:
Sometimes the care giver gets so exhausted that they end up going before the one that was receiving the care.
Click to expand...

Sad to report, that is exactly what killed my father. Took care of my mother full time for almost 15 years, and shielded my sister and me from the truth of my mother's situation nearly all of that time.

A magnificent human being, lost to us far too early purely due to his personal understanding of his responsibilities to her, promised 50 years earlier.

Damn, but I miss that man...will forever and more. In his last days, I promised him I'd take care of my mother, his wife...period. Of course, there is no other choice now, nor was then, as I know you all understand.
 
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