The fingerprints of Alzheimer's, dementia

One of the current mantras of people working with other persons who live with dementia is “When you’ve met one person living with Alzheimer’s, you’ve met one person living with Alzheimer’s.” This is a catchy way to honor the uniqueness of every person living with dementia.

But like most efforts to be clever — and it is — the aphorism may too easily seduce us into thinking “that’s all the further we need to go” when we consider this neurological nightmare that visits far too many people.

So let me affirm three truth-pieces that are important to remember:

1. Yes, each person with dementia is unique as a person and in how his or her symptoms show themselves.

That is a major challenge for every person involved in care-giving. But this is only one fingerprint of dementia.

2. Symptoms of dementia themselves fingerprints of dementia. They are more predictable in most every person who lives with dementia.

Each symptom can show itself differently in each person. Also, the fingerprint uniqueness can depend on the kind of dementia the person has.

While Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia, persons with vascular dementia or Lewy Body’s dementia will all have some similar symptoms. But some symptoms are unique to the type of dementia. There are well over 70 different kinds of dementia! So you can be sure that the symptomatic fingerprints will sometimes differ amongst all those forms of dementia — not to mention the unique individuals afflicted.

3. Another important fingerprint of dementia involves attitudes and relationships of the person living with dementia. Where do we start with that one? I have observed a wide range of attitudes, from immobilizing depression to the healthiest kind of hope.

Every person with dementia also has many relationships — family, friends, medical personnel, advocates, etc. The quality of those relationships plays a major role in how the person responds — both inwardly and outwardly — to those around him/her.

Again, I have seen such a wide range of healthy and dysfunctional relationships. Healthy connections make a person feel safe and loved. Dysfunctional relationships trigger fear, anger, depression or a combination of negative behaviors.

This third fingerprint — attitude and relationship — will be more directly addressed at next Tuesday’s Geezer Forum.

The co-owners of Northwest Handmades, Dan and Pam Mimmack, will share part of their story as a family living with dementia. Both Dan and Pam are strong advocates for facing this disease without fear. Come join us for this authentic conversation about how a hopeful but determined couple stand up to this great challenge.

We meet next Tuesday, Nov. 22, at Columbia Bank’s Community Room, 2:30-4 p.m.

If you know someone with the fingerprints of dementia, I hope you will join us, and maybe even share part of your story.

Paul Graves, M.Div., is Lead Geezer-in-Training of Elder Advocates, a consulting ministry on aging issues. Contact Paul at 208-610-4971 or elderadvocates@nctv.com