It's #AlzheimersAwarenessMonth. When my father was diagnosed in the 80s in his mid-50s, the different kinds of #dementia & #Alzheimers weren't known. When I met #neurologist#BruceMiller, he explained that the real diagnosis was #earlyonset Alzheimer's w/the #logopenic variant (word-finding). The #diagnosis came late (death had already come) but what a relief to have the words & a deeper understanding of what turned my father's life, mine, & my family's inside out.
On #WorldAlzheimer'sDay, I want to thank #BruceMiller, #neurologist extraordinaire, for listening w/such #empathy to stories about my father, Jerry, so he could get to know him thru my memories & write #FindingTheRightWords w/me. What a gift he gave me - helping me honor my dad in the way I needed to - & the world. His knowledge of #dementia & ability to communicate it in a way that we can all understand is invaluable. Here is a photo of my dad laughing at his dad, my pop, who is being silly.