NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Thursday night marks the last night of Alzheimer's Awareness month.
It's why NewsChannel 5 sat down to hear from family members and caregivers of those who have loved ones with the disease.
Melissa Cuthbertson said her dad was a talkative, outdoorsy pharmacist.
When his condition worsened, she moved him to Nashville to take care of him physically, mentally, and financially.
"He told me he got stopped because he was speeding and then he got lost on the way back to church," she remembered of when he first showed signs of Alzheimer's.
"Just loving him right where he was. That was the biggest thing for me."
Cybele Raver lives a similar experience as a caregiver to her husband, Clancy. He has dementia and aphasia, which makes it hard to communicate. To Cybele, he will still always be a whip-smart scientist and a huge part of their tight-knit family.
"For every person I think it's out of left field. I don't think anyone anticipates an experience like this," she said.
"I think a lot of people our age and generation are used to being autonomous and highly achieving, and so we have to set different goals."
Both women shared the emotional ups and downs that come with a disease like Alzheimer's.
They saw the warning signs and want you to know them, too.
Here is a list, per the Alzheimer's Association:
- Memory loss that disrupts daily life
- Challenges in planning or solving problems
- Difficulty in completely familiar tasks
- Confusion with time and place
- Trouble understanding visual images or spatial relationships
- New problems with words in speaking or writing
- Misplacing things and losing the ability to retrace steps
- Decreased or poor judgment
- Withdrawal from work or social activities
- Changes in mood or personality
Both Raver and Cuthbertson also agree — support from their community makes a world of difference.
If you are worried about a loved one, experts say it's best to talk to a physician and be screened. The earlier, the better.
There are several resources for you in Nashville.
The Alzheimer's Association has a 24/7 helpline you can call at 800-272-3900.
You can learn more about educational programs and support groups with the Alzheimer's Association here, and with Abe's Garden Community here.
Fostering Hope provides Christmas for kids in foster care. I'm delighted to see Fostering Hope expand this year to expand their reach to now include kids in Foster care in metro AND foster kids in East TN hard hit by Helene.
-Bree Smith
