Connect
← Return to Dementia and Aphasia
Discussion
Comment receiving replies
I'm 86, my wife of 40 years is 82. About 8 years ago, she began showing signs of aphasia and short-term memory loss. She lost computer and telephone capability. We began seeing a neurologist as soon as we were certain of her problem. The neurologist is about 75 miles away; our primary provider nearly 50. My wife has declined slowly. She is still in good shape physically, showers daily, dresses nicely, and puts on her own makeup. She handles some physical tasks such as yardwork although tends to be obsessive about some and ignores others.
She's very social. Enjoys spending time with friends around town. We have a lot of support in town.
Our problem is that the neurologist won't come up with a diagnosis. After viewing an MRI early on, he commented that all he could see was an aging brain. He demands seeing her every 6 months and spends perhaps
5 minutes maximum with her at each appointment. He prescribes the same two pills after asking me if I think
the dosage should be changed. Best I can tell, the pills do help keep her level. We'd like to change doctors, but the nearest cities are between 150 and 200 miles away. We are wondering if online visits are available anywhere. Any suggestions appreciated.
Replies to "I'm 86, my wife of 40 years is 82. About 8 years ago, she began showing..."
Connect
I'm sorry to hear about your wife's memory issues and aphasia. My husband just turned 62 and he was diagnosed with dementia caused by alzheimers 2 years ago. And his aphasia is progressing.
We travel 90 miles for his dr. appts. so i know how overwhelming or frustrating it can be, especially if your appt is only 5 minutes long. We're fortunate enough that our appts are a good 30-45 minutes long...we only see her twice a year. Because he is an established returning patient, his dr. gives us the choice of in-person or virtual. I would definitely check with her dr to see if that is an option, considering how far you have to travel. AND let them know the distance you have to travel.
I guess we were a little fortunate because tests and appts were happeing at a good pace, so we could get a diagnosis.
His PCP requested a referral for him to see a neurologist ( after 1 visit ) due to my concerns about his forgetfulness and his slight cognitive impairments. After performing some cognitive tests with the neurologist she ordered several other tests (MRI, EEG, lumbar puncture) and it was those results that she recommended us to see an alzheimer's neurologist, and we are continuing to see her.
I had to do some of my own research of why or what could be causing his memory loss and my suspicions were confirmed with the diagnosis of dememtia (FTD....frontotemporal dementia).
ALZ is hard to diagnose because they don't know what causes it, therefore, there is no cure BUT, the best thing that I found was to let his dr. know everything I could about his condtion..no matter how big or small your concerns. When asked if I think a dose increase on 1 of his meds would be okay, i agreed, and it seems to help a little I guess. I just remind myself that the meds will slow the progression, not cure, so I only want to increase if doc sees progression as well as me.
It sounds like your wife can still do quite a bit by herself or with minimal help from you and thats great!!! Maybe it's just natual aging, which would be the best news. But don't be afraid to address your concerns OR get a second opinion. I hope you can get the help you need. I'll pray for you
Hugs and Prayers
God Bless