Is Alzheimer’s a “Closet” Disease?
October 29, 2008 by Mary Emma Allen
Filed under Diseases & Conditions
Closet Disease
Keeping one’s illness, when it involved mental or emotional conditions, “in the closet” was common when I was growing up. You only whispered about someone’s mental disorders. Families tried to keep that person at home, while not literally “in a closet,” figuratively so.
You tried not to talk about Aunt Mollie who laughed at inappropriate times, wore her clothes backward, took walks in the middle of the night, or held conversations with people of the past. Perhaps she even had to spend some time in a mental institution and have “shock” treatment, the common way of dealing with mental and emotional conditions then.
Is Alzheimer’s in “the closet?”
Although we’re able to talk more openly about dementia and Alzheimer’s nowadays, it wasn’t always so. In the early 1990s, soon after my dad’s death, realized my mom was developing the same symptoms as her sister, who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. However, when I mentioned this to family and friends, many didn’t want to face it and didn’t want to talk about it.
Yet, if Mother had developed a physical illness, there would have been no problem.Yes, we would have had to arrange care, but there would have been more family involvement and communication.
Many families still don’t want to admit a member has Alzheimer’s. They find some stigma attached. Since it’s nothing they have done to cause it, nor the person who had developed it, why not associate with that family member? In spite of frustrations and disappointments, you actually can enjoy them and bring them pleasure.
Carol Bradley Bursack has more to say on this topic at Minding Our Elders and Our Alzheimer’s.com.
Dear Sir or Madam;
Please consider a link exchange with my site entitled Alzheimer’s and Dementias. My mother recently past away from problems related to her Alzheimer’s. My sisters and I managed to keep our mother living alone safely in her home for over six years after she was diagnoised with Alzheimer’s. I authored a book entitled “Living Alone with Dementia-Alzheimer’s” (How to Keep Your Loved One in Their Home as Long as Possible). I feel my site is very related and compatible to the content of your site and would appreciate very much an oportunity to exchange links with your site. If you would like to trade links, I will post your link here:
http://www.alzheimersanddementias.com/Links.html
My information is as follows:
URL: http://www.alzheimersanddementias.com/
Title: Alzheimer’s and Dementias
Description: How to care for a loved one living alone with Dementia-Alzheimer’s
Thank you,
Terry F. Townsend
Thank you Terry
I’m sure that for some families who are directly exposed to Alzheimer’s by having a close family member diagnoised with it, keeping it in the closet is an initial thought. I believe that most people who are inclined to think this way, do so out of a lack of knowledge about the disease. If they realized the harsh statistics for what they actually are and the real genuine odds of themselves or anyone else they know getting the disease they might feel differently. Statistically speaking, we are all at risk and by the time we reach 85 years of age over half of us will have it. Why would anyone who understands this disease for what it is and can do, consider keeping it in the closet. The more people who know about your loved one with Alzheimer’s, the more people to possibly help them. This is just a few thoughts on the subject.
Terry Townsend
Author, “Living Alone with Dementia/Alzheimer’s” (How to Keep Your Loved One in Their Home as Long as Possible)
Thank you, Terry, for stopping by Alzheimer’s Notes and sharing your thoughts on the topic of “closet” Alzheimer’s. By encouraging more people to talk about and understand the disease, caregivers and family members will find more encouragement and help. It’s good to see this happening and people like you encouraging others.
Thank you, Esther, for stopping by Alzheimer’s Notes. I do hope my blog post and Terry’s comment have helped and encouraged you.