Support Group for Those of Us Living With Mild Dementia

I know there is a Dementia Caregiver Support Group https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/caregivers-dementia/

I would like to have a group for people like me. I am entering the Mild Dementia phase from Mild Cognitive Impairment.
It’s frightening to think about my future.

I'm grateful for this group for Dementia Patients https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/early-dementia-mild-cognitive-impairment-mci/

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Early Dementia & Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) Support Group.

Profile picture for Colleen Young, Connect Director @colleenyoung

@jayanthk, thanks to @SusanEllen66 efforts in starting this discussion and forming a supportive group of people living with cognitive impairment, we will be opening a new support group on Mayo Clinic Connect soon (likely June).

To everyone, here is a list of Support Groups by condition on Mayo Clinic Connect https://connect.mayoclinic.org/groups/

Following the naming convention and to help people find the new group in an alphabetical list, what name would you call the group?
A. Cognitive Impairment & Living with Early Dementia
B. Dementia: Living with Cognitive Impairment
C. Early Dementia & Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI)

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@colleenyoung Actually, I’d probably reverse the order of C, because not all MCI progresses to dementia.

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Profile picture for jacquelineh @jacquelineh

@colleenyoung

C. Early Dementia & Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI)

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Nancy E. Im beginning to have "some signs" ie. losing an important thought in the middle of a conversation - not remembering names of people and places - occasionally forgetting my grocery list... However I can do most med. Level sudokus and play a pretty successful bridge game.
What can I do?

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C. Early Dementia & Mild Cognitive Impairment

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Profile picture for billnanearney1889 @billnanearney1889

Nancy E. Im beginning to have "some signs" ie. losing an important thought in the middle of a conversation - not remembering names of people and places - occasionally forgetting my grocery list... However I can do most med. Level sudokus and play a pretty successful bridge game.
What can I do?

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@colleenyoung I havent been diagnosed but … my choice would be C, too.

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Profile picture for billnanearney1889 @billnanearney1889

Nancy E. Im beginning to have "some signs" ie. losing an important thought in the middle of a conversation - not remembering names of people and places - occasionally forgetting my grocery list... However I can do most med. Level sudokus and play a pretty successful bridge game.
What can I do?

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@billnanearney1889 You can get tested by a neurologist. Then, if you do have MCI, you learn to adapt to your new capabilities, through ongoing appointments, support groups like this one, and figuring it out for yourself.

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Here's a clever experiment: what if you had a sample of people in their 60s who has SAME level of cognitive decline as those in their 80s?
Well then you can simply find out WHAT is different between the two samples.

It turns out the difference is NOT in their food behavior, or in their physical activity, or ... but in the large number of strong SOCIAL connections and a focus on life-purpose.

Now I seem to have some cognitive/memory recall impairment, but I want to put all the blame on this new self-imposed epidemic of loneliness where we have forgotten how to even talk on simple day-t-day matters. Oddly, I see in philosophy groups where up to 100 mostly young show up in-person , but they are more eager to talk Without even bothering to know what the subject is. It seems like a perverse behavior but can be explained by as if the overpowering Need-to-Connect wants to push thru.
However, the good-and-the-bad news is that a friendship is always half in your control ... unlike everything else, such as healthful habits.

So, at 82, I spend lot of my time looking for ways to develop meaningful connections. I wonder how large this looms over my potential mental decline.
Maybe perpetual semisweet struggle IS the name of the game called life is.
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/29/well/mind/super-agers-study.html

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Profile picture for billnanearney1889 @billnanearney1889

Nancy E. Im beginning to have "some signs" ie. losing an important thought in the middle of a conversation - not remembering names of people and places - occasionally forgetting my grocery list... However I can do most med. Level sudokus and play a pretty successful bridge game.
What can I do?

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@billnanearney1889
If you’re aware of your memory lapses, then it’s not a disability yet. I’d suggest you see a neurologist and get evaluated. This is of the utmost importance because it could be due to a metabolic cause, and thus may be resolved with treatment such as vitamins, etc. Good luck

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How were you diagnosed? I had an MRI brain scan . Now waiting for the results.

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