Ms. Luo actively matches various talents and social activities for Mr. Dementia. Now, my husband can interact fluently with his relatives and friends, and his illness is almost invisible to outsiders.
(provided by patients)
[Reporter Hou Jiayu/Taipei Report] Many people mistakenly believe that dementia is only normal aging or a patent of the elderly. However, for families with young dementia, initial neglect and subsequent mental and behavioral symptoms are often accompanied by unspeakable storms. Ms. Luo, a patient's family member, shared her husband's (Mr. Lu) six-year journey from onset and diagnosis to the family's joint fight against the disease at the International Dementia Month health education press conference today (10), calling on the public to pay attention to the early warning signs of dementia.
Ms. Luo recalled that her husband was originally engaged in business work and had a lively personality and stable attitude. However, a year before he was diagnosed in 1999, my husband began to show abnormal signs: he once cycled around in the familiar Zhonghe area for 1 or 2 hours and could not find the road. He lost his health insurance card and reissued it more than 6 times in a year. He lost 2 or 3 mobile phones. He even parked his motorcycle but forgot where it was. He thought it was stolen and went to the police station to report the case.
Because my husband was only in his 50s at the time, he was still young and had no "sense of illness" at all, and he was quite resistant to seeking medical treatment. Ms. Luo took her husband to various major hospitals such as the Department of Psychiatry, National Taiwan University, Yongzhong Hospital, Yadong Hospital, etc. The process of seeking medical treatment was repeatedly frustrated. It was not until she took the initiative to contact the Dementia Association's consultation hotline, and after the social worker assessed that there was an 80% chance of dementia, that she was referred to the neurology clinic for detailed examination, and she was officially diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.
In the early stage of diagnosis, in addition to forgetfulness, what also devastated the whole family was the behavioral symptoms of dementia (BPSD). Ms. Luo pointed out that her husband became extremely irritable and developed a hoarding habit of picking up sundries and bringing them home from the community recycling yard. One time, his son came home from get off work to buy food. He accidentally dropped the food due to his hasty movements. The husband thought that his son was disrespectful and provocative to him, so he got angry and smashed the food on the table onto the sofa.
Then a fierce physical conflict broke out between the father and son. The husband jumped up wildly and suppressed his son to the ground, strangling his neck. Ms. Luo could not keep the two grown men away at all. After finally separating the two, the husband rushed out of the house and even called 110 to accuse the family of "domestic violence." When the police came to the door, fortunately, Ms. Luo had a diagnosis certificate issued by a doctor with her. She showed it to the police and explained that her husband had lost control of his mood due to illness, and a family crisis was resolved.
After experiencing a serious conflict incident, Ms. Luo took the initiative to report her dilemma to the medical and dementia care resource unit and sought professional assistance. After evaluation by a doctor, oral liquids were added to the existing treatment. She shared that the dosage of oral liquids can be flexibly adjusted under the evaluation of a physician, making the treatment more flexible for dementia patients with unstable mood swings.
In addition to taking medication regularly, Ms. Luo also actively introduces "non-drug treatment". Since she still had to go to work, she applied for a foreign caregiver to help with her daily companionship, and arranged for her husband to attend a variety of courses from Monday to Friday, including exercise classes, dementia community activities, handicrafts and cognitive stimulation courses, etc. She also took her husband to travel abroad every year to keep him from being out of touch with society.
Now that the diagnosis has entered the 6th year, Ms. Luo is pleased to say that although her husband's short-term memory continues to deteriorate, his daily life functions have remained quite stable. Most people will not even notice that he is sick during a short conversation.
Ms. Luo (left) shared emotionally that caregivers cannot fight alone and must actively seek external resources and participate in caregiver support courses and respite activities. (Photo by reporter Hou Jiayu)
