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Maldonian t1_iyi025n wrote

Reply to comment by kingtiger88 in Well-known town official kills domestic partner, then himself at home in New London by M0RALVigilance

I did start to wonder that. I recently lost a loved one to dementia, and while I never considered killing the person, I could see how that might cross someone's mind. It's a terrible disease that greatly affects not only the sick person, but everyone around them.

But where did you get this information? We don't want to spread rumors without being sure.

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kingtiger88 t1_iyi1488 wrote

I work for the town

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Maldonian t1_iyi2x4t wrote

Thank you. That does change my opinion on this situation. I don't think he made the right decision, but I can understand it. I want to be a little bit vague to protect the privacy of my loved one, but I saw the disease first hand and I saw the terrible things it does.

PS People tend to use the words Alzheimer's and dementia interchangeably. Dementia describes the various diseases that attack the brain and damage memory, personality, and decision making. Alzheimer's is the most common type of dementia.

Interviewing someone with dementia, and looking at their medical history, can give you a pretty good idea of what kind of dementia they have. But currently, the only way to definitively diagnose Alzheimer's is by doing a brain biopsy after death.

So, not to nitpick, but just to inform.

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AMC4x4 t1_iyichkv wrote

Yup. My mom had Lewy Body, but it was so frustrating because the doctors couldn't even give an actual diagnosis. But it was so clear that's what it was - from seeing people in the dark (which started six or seven years before any other symptoms materialized), to the red nose and sniffles, to digestive issues, to confusion that came and went, until things got really bad.

There definitely needs to be more education to the public about all the forms of dementia. It's a horrible, horrible syndrome, and anyone with a family member going through it, it's like a "secret society" where you know what someone else went through if they had it, but society at large has no idea if they haven't known someone affected by it.

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