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My Fellow Americans,

I have recently been told that I am one of the millions of Americans who will be afflicted with Alzheimer’s Disease.

Upon learning this news, Nancy and I had to decide whether as private citizens we would keep this a private matter or whether we would make this news known in a public way.

In the past Nancy suffered from breast cancer and I had my cancer surgeries. We found through our open disclosures we were able to raise public awareness. We were happy that as a result many more people underwent testing.

They were treated in early stages and able to return to normal, healthy lives.

So now, we feel it is important to share it with you. In opening our hearts, we hope this might promote greater awareness of this condition. Perhaps it will encourage a clearer understanding of the individuals and families who are affected by it.

At the moment I feel just fine. I intend to live the remainder of the years God gives me on this earth doing the things I have always done. I will continue to share life’s journey with my beloved Nancy and my family. I plan to enjoy the great outdoors and stay in touch with my friends and supporters.

Unfortunately, as Alzheimer’s Disease progresses, the family often bears a heavy burden. I only wish there was some way I could spare Nancy from this painful experience. When the time comes I am confident that with your help she will face it with faith and courage.

In closing let me thank you, the American people for giving me the great honor of allowing me to serve as your President. When the Lord calls me home, whenever that may be, I will leave with the greatest love for this country of ours and eternal optimism for its future.

I now begin the journey that will lead me into the sunset of my life. I know that for America there will always be a bright dawn ahead.

Thank you, my friends. May God always bless you.

Sincerely,

Ronald Reagan

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 06-07-2004, 05:42 PM:
 
I'm surprised Ronald Reagan was able to live with Alzheimer's Disease as long has he did.

My boss' father, and the founder of our sign company, died last year from complications related to Alzheimer's Disease. He lasted only about five years after diagnosis. One of the really hard things about this disease is how someone you have known for a long time sees you as a complete stranger. The person afflicted is not the only one hurt. His family and friends have to endure quite a bit of hardship as well from a kind of emotional robbery that happens with this cruel disease. Audrey had to be put into a special nursing home with an Alzheimer's unit featuring 24 hour supervision. Audrey didn't know he was battling Alzheimers. He would think it was 1961 all over again and he was back in the neon shop. His wife would find him melting ink pens and other stuff over the kitchen stove because Audrey thought he was making neon for a sign project. That's a pretty messed up deal. They didn't want to have to put Audrey in a nursing home, but they had no choice. It was too dangerous to keep him at home. I wouldn't wish Alzheimer's on my worst enemy.
 

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Posted by Paul G. Thompson (Member # 655) on 06-07-2004, 08:08 PM:
 
It is a terrible disease. I would not wish something like that on my worst enemy.

I have lost some friends due to this disease. When you see them go through what they go through, it is very humbling.
 

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Posted by David Favel (Member # 1125) on 06-07-2004, 09:02 PM:
 
It's really funny to see my grandmother sneaking around the rest home to smoke. Great old girl but in early stages of this disease. Funny how she can go from lucid to "just not there" in a very short time.
I suppose it dosen't help me sneaking her in smokes, but she now has so few pleasures.
 

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Posted by Bruce McGee (Member # 131) on 06-08-2004, 08:11 AM:
 
I watched my neighbor gradually fade away over the course of 3 years. He was an aluminum siding / storm window salesman, and had parts for almost ANY window made stored in his basement. His collection was over 40 years old. I could describe what I was looking for to him. He'd always say, "Give me a few minutes..." Then he'd come back, usually with exactly what I needed. He loved giving the stuff away, as he had no use anymore for much of it.

Then one day, it started taking much longer to find things. Then one day, he asked me to help him look for something. Shortly thereafter, the doctor told him the bad news.

He stayed home until about 2 months before his death. When he went to the nursing home, he no longer knew who I was, along with most of his family. I knew him for 38 years.

RIP R.M. "Randy" Randolph 1917-1997.
 

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Posted by Thomas Procyk (Member # 1170) on 06-09-2004, 10:27 AM:
 
A very sad disease, indeed. Secretly, it's one of my greatest fears as well. Not only because of the trauma it brings to the patient, (they wouldn't really understand they had it in the advanced stages, would they?) but it's probably more painful for friends and family.

My mother's friend had her father come down with the disease. They were best buddies all their lives. Then the disease reached the threshold. When she came to visit him, he would have this perplexed, "Who are you?" look on his face, but then he'd remember, like she was an old high school friend he met on the street. Then, it got to the point where she'd have to explain who she was and recount memories for him to recognize her. And then, she just became a stranger. I think the hardest thing is that the patient doesn't understand that this is a very special person who cares a lot about them and their well being... it's just "some lady" that seems very sad for him.

Very painful to see someone close to you "slip away" like that.

=TMP=
 

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Posted by Mike Fitzgerald (Member # 1304) on 06-09-2004, 07:01 PM:
 
My mother is in a nursing home with Alzheimer's. I have seen her go from being forgetful to now not even knowing who we are. I call her on the phone and she never really knows me. I always ask her how her day was and it is always the same she was playing with the kids all day, I do not correct her. The phone calls are more for me then her. She is in good health otherwise. This is a truly terrible disease.
 

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Posted by Dave Williams (Member # 299) on 06-10-2004, 12:53 AM:
 
Perhaps now with the passing of Ronald Reagan, we can get some true funding and research in to how to our brains work, and how to fix it all when it breaks.

I can empathize to a small degree with those that have alzheimers, and thier families. I fought my own battle with a brain tumor and after the surgury found that my long term memories were nearly inaccessable and that my short term memory was virtually non-existant.

Six years later I still have trouble remembering names of family members, and long time friends wonder why I can never remember who they are. Things have improved for me over the past couple of years, but the short term memory thing bugs the daylights not just out of me, but of those that are closest to me.

Alzhiemers should be cured. We need to spend less time worrying about petty things and remember that there is still human suffering that can be prevented.

I have always admired President Reagan, mostly for his courage in taking things head on. I remember when he was shot, and my family feared the worst, but were so glad to see that he survived and was back at work so quickly. The fact that he survived so damned long is no surpise to me at all. Even in his darkest final days, where he was no longer the man he used to be, he was still the man we all knew him to be.

While I will miss his presense, I feel that even in his death he may be able to help unite this country once again. Time will tell.

Ciao

Dave
 

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