Dementia

[poliphilo]

It's not the first time she's come downstairs without her watch, but it is the first time she's rubbed her wrist, vaguely aware things weren't as they should be,  and asked, "Can you tell me what I'm missing?"

Earlier she'd had me explain an article on the front page of her Telegraph in which some ennobled fool was explaining that old people can stave off dementia by taking more exercise and doing crossword puzzles.She thought it was funny. I thought it was funny too, but with a dash of the bitters- because it hasn't worked for her.

She still does crosswords, by the way; she's even quite good at it. And then she forgets that she's done them.

Comments

[idahoswede.livejournal.com]

Not that long ago, Ray's mother was beating all of us at Scrabble as well.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

It's a particular kind of skill; I'm not sure it has much to do with overall mental competence.

[cmcmck.livejournal.com]

That's in the same class as Edwina Curry's suggestion that the poor and elderly buy silk underwear to keep themselves warm!

Let them eat brioche, n'est pas? :o(

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Bless!

[splodgenoodles.livejournal.com]

I've read some more recent research that suggests all that mind puzzles help with is ... making us better at doing mind puzzles. And therefore better able to do them when everything else is failing.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I'd agree with that.

[wyrmwwd.livejournal.com]

I went over to My Favorite Pilgrim's house yesterday. She has this new thing that she bought at the recent festival... a floor lamp. But it wasn't bright enough, and she didn't know what to do. I told her I would pick up a 100 watt bulb next time I went to the store.

She wanted me to take the bulb out of the light and take it with me "so that I would get the right thing". She has completely forgotten what a light bulb is! It's all new technology to her, the same as plugging something into a wall socket. She can't do that anymore, either because she doesn't understand how to do it. It's all new technology.

Dementia is kind of fascinating, it a way.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

My mother just sat through a two hour TV movie. Just as it was ending I entered the room and she handed me the remote and said, "I don't know what this programme is; Can you find me something else?"