Yesterday, 20th September was World Alzheimer’s Day,

I’m sure many people identify with the problem in some way.

I know I do.

My mother-in-law has it and it’s such a shame. Physically she’s still reasonably well, just getting weaker through lack of exercise, BUT mentally she’s a mess.

It’s so sad, especially for my father-in-law, who is looking after her and seeing the last years of his life trapped in the role of carer to someone who doesn’t or can’t appreciate all he does for her.

She can’t remember from one minute to the next what has happened. Every day my father-in-law has to take her out somewhere. He drives miles in the car because that’s what she wants to do – or says she does, but she’s forgotten she’s been as soon as they are back in the house.

So why does he do it, you may ask?

Well, it’s because the alternative is worse. Stuck inside the same four walls with someone who doesn’t speak to him, or if she does it’s not in a nice way, and who doesn’t want to do anything. She won’t read, listen to music, do crosswords, jigsaws or anything. The television is on, but she doesn’t really watch it.

Alzheimer’s has turned her into a living shell.

Yesterday, 20th September was also my friend’s birthday. She’s 84 years old and an incredible person. She’s got no signs of Alzheimer, has all her wits about her and remains very active despite having a bad leg, which has caused her discomfort for several years.

She’s always upbeat though despite the fact she’s likely to just drop dead any minute. Apparently it runs in the family. Her mother and father, two brothers and a sister all went the same way. They had massive heart attacks and died on the spot.

My friend thinks it will be a great way to go and says she’s not worried, but as a widow she lives alone so has made arrangements with her immediate neighbours to keep an eye out for her. If her blinds aren’t raised by a certain time in the morning they have to come and check she’s okay.

One morning she decided to have a lie in and woke to find two concerned individuals in her bedroom, so now, even if she’s tired, she’ll get up, raise the blinds, and then go back to bed.

She makes me smile and I’m so glad she hasn’t got any memory problems.

Both my mother-in-law and my friend are of similar age. However, their lifestyles have been very different.

One has led a relatively sheltered life, doing very little physical labour, wearing make-up and body creams, having regular perms and hair colourings, and spending much of her time indoors.

The other has worked outside all her life, worn little makeup and rarely had anything other than a cut and blow-dry on her hair. She always has home cooked meals, and until her 80th birthday had NEVER been out for a meal!

Apparently, there are over 100 different types of dementia and Alzheimers disease  is responsible for many of them. Brain cells get destroyed and people get memory problems, mood changes and communication difficulties.

It’s not nice and one survey I heard of said people are more frightened of losing their mind than they are of getting cancer.

I’m one of them.

Of course, we all hope we’ll never get either, and there are some things you can do to prevent both. It’s no good relying on the medical industry for miracle cures. There aren’t any and even if there were, do you think we’d find out about them?

There’s not much money in “cures”!

It’s weird though the way doctors acknowledge they have no idea what causes Alzheimer’s or Cancer, and yet are able to prescribe medication for them.

How can that be?

Anyway, if my friend is anything to go by we can all do a lot to help ourselves by eating sensibly, exercising regularly and stop putting the toxic junk in and on our bodies. (Shameless plug here – if you haven’t read my free e-book on skincare products, read it now, while you still can!).

Another book you could read is The Alzheimer’s Reversing Breakthrough, which is full of useful information about the root cause of alzheimer’s (indeed all sickness and disease), and more importantly, how to get your body to heal itself.

I’ve read it and it’s good.

I think it’s too late for my mother-in-law, but certainly not for me.

How about you?

Jean