Today, I am participating in Alzheimer’s Association The Longest Day™ and biking 86 miles (the weather permitting and God willing) to honor my mother. My mom, Althea Hudzinski, is the second youngest of 10 children, all of which suffered from Alzheimer’s disease (excluding one that died of Cancer). She is the sole survivor of her siblings — and what amazes me is that she was there for each and every one of them. Early on, [...]
It’s 6:19 a.m. and it’s dark. I’ve had three shots of espresso and my legs are vibrating and tears are streaming down my face. I shouldn’t be here. My ride for Alzheimer’s Association The Longest Day™ should never have happened. My grand plans — having a big team and raising lots of money to beat this horrible disease that stole my mom — fell apart. Alzheimer’s got in the way. I’m standing next to Rebecca, [...]
Ciao tutti, My name is Gina Steedley Wills. My biological grandmother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease at age 55 and eventually passed away at age 63. She went from being a very strong, tall, intelligent woman to just a shell, a skeleton. It was a terrible way to leave this world and it made quite an impact on me. Today I’m running and walking for three hours as part of the Alzheimer’s Association The Longest [...]
Whether your musical tastes run to the 70s television show with the Partridge family singing their theme song, C’mon Get Happy, or the 1950s song that inspired it, Get Happy, made famous by Judy Garland, the message is that happiness is in our hands — not something we are handed. When it comes to caring for a loved one, happiness may not be the first emotion that you would associate with a life role that [...]
![Why Aren’t You Researching Coconut Oil or [Insert Other Substance Here]?](http://blog.alz.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/coconut-oil-2-150x150.jpg)
My recent blog entry “Can Coconut Oil Treat Alzheimer’s?” generated a lot of comments with the same question: “Why isn’t the Alzheimer’s Association researching coconut oil?” It’s an excellent question and one I get often about coconut oil and other substances that have been rumored to help people with Alzheimer’s. At first glance, the answer is simple: we’ve received few, if any proposals specifically studying coconut oil. However, we have received a little over half a [...]
In 2008, at the age of 62, I was diagnosed with younger-onset Alzheimer’s disease (also known as early-onset Alzheimer’s). Not long after, I retired after serving 23 years as the President/CEO of the Private Industry Council (PIC) of San Luis Obispo County. While I thought I was functioning well, there were ample signs a few years before, indicating not all was necessarily right with my health. Part of me recognized this, while another part of [...]
I’m Valerie Ferrero, wife, mother and care partner. My husband Lee was diagnosed with younger-onset Alzheimer’s (also known as early-onset Alzheimer’s) in November 2008. This is the beginning of my story….. It is difficult to know what action to take, what plans to make, or what the future holds when you don’t have the answer to the “elephant in the room.” It took more than seven years for us to get Lee’s diagnosis of younger-onset [...]
