The Alzheimer's Association didn't wait to publish my blog post. It went live today, and you can see it here.
I was reviewing my 2015, 2017, and 2018 radiologist reports from my MRIs. What struck me was that (after some internet research) my hippocampus volume and lateral ventricle volumes for the 2017 MRIs (two of them) correspond with someone in full dementia, not mild cognitive impairment. (The 2018 report said I had been stable since 2017.)
Between 2015 and 2017 there was deterioration, notably in hippocampus volume. In 2015 they had me in the 36 percentile for men my age, but in 2017 they said <1 percentile. Lateral ventricle volume -- which is void space from loss of brain mass -- put me at >99 percentile both times. The radiologist commented that the difference in hippocampus volume between 2015 and 2017 could be due to differences in technique. They were done in the same facility but with machines of differing capabilities.
From what I read, hippocampus volume < 1 percentile and lateral ventricle volume of >99 percentile correspond with dementia. Funny, I don't feel demented...
In my book, "Beating the Dementia Monster," I describe what has occurred since 2015 when I first knew I had memory problems. (You can find it on Amazon.com.) I have experienced remarkable improvement, and I’m certain that I can share valuable information with many others. In this second edition I continue my story to 2020 and provide greater understanding of how Alzheimer's advances and why what I did worked.
Wednesday, January 23, 2019
Monday, January 14, 2019
Expanding my reach -- and other news
Outreach Expansion
Back on December 18, our city councilman, Phil Lemley, invited me to a "Memory Cafe" meeting at the library. Phil is a member of the Washington State Council on Aging, and he has a keen interest in public policy issues surrounding dementia. It was a small meeting that, from my perception, was a support group for people affected by dementia. There were two people there from the Alzheimer's Association (WA State chapter), and I got to meet and speak with them.
I talked about my book and explained to them that I'm interested in outreach to people with MCI due to Alzheimer's disease. In the following days, they connected me with their Director of Marketing and Communications, who had a number of ideas regarding how we could partner. Initially, she wanted me to write a post for the Washington State chapter's blog, and she began trying to get a television interview for me.
I wrote the blog post, and after some edits, it's now ready to go. I believe they will post it in February. Basically, it's a snapshot of my experience in how I got to where I am now. It lists the factors I believe have led to my success.
The TV station is interested, but they want some confirmation that I'm not full of baloney. They want to interview someone with firsthand knowledge of my case, but no one wants to be on TV about it. The communications director is still trying to find someone through her contacts that will at least state that exercise and other factors can, in fact, produce positive results. This story continues to unfold, so stay tuned.
Some Challenges
I've had several hiccups in my exercise program over the past couple of weeks. First with "overtraining syndrome," and then with some surgery.
I had been advised by my orthopedist to give my body a rest at least one day a week. Instead, I stuck with a 7-day regimen and upped my game on weight training. Bad idea.
I began noticing that my legs seemed heavy all the time, so that walking was becoming more difficult. I'd never experienced anything like that before. I figured something was wrong, but I didn't connect it with my exercise. A search on the Internet led my to the discovery of "heavy leg syndrome," On reading about it, I became concerned, and decided that it was not to be ignored.
What causes heavy leg syndrome? Running down the list I came to "overtraining syndrome (OTS)." From all I read, OTS is not to be ignored -- it can lead to more serious problems. So what's the cure? First, take at least two weeks off from training to recover. Then take off at least one day a week after that. Time to listen to my orthopedist.
Taking that two weeks off has not been a problem.
After learning that Tamsulosin can cause dementia I dropped it. But this led to the realization that I would need the surgery that I've been postponing now for a couple of years.
I had the surgery on January 8, and the urologist left a stint in my prostate while it heals. The stint comes out on January 21. The doctor said that I can do the treadmill with the stint in, but I'm finding that's not the case. At this point, I don't anticipate getting back on the treadmill before January 22, but we'll see how it goes.
It's been several weeks now since I've done serious exercise, and I'm wondering about the consequences of that. I definitely feel (rather subjectively) that my cognition has been slipping. However, this could be due to the Valium and opioids they've given me. Hopefully I'll be sound of both mind and body in a couple of weeks.
Back on December 18, our city councilman, Phil Lemley, invited me to a "Memory Cafe" meeting at the library. Phil is a member of the Washington State Council on Aging, and he has a keen interest in public policy issues surrounding dementia. It was a small meeting that, from my perception, was a support group for people affected by dementia. There were two people there from the Alzheimer's Association (WA State chapter), and I got to meet and speak with them.
I talked about my book and explained to them that I'm interested in outreach to people with MCI due to Alzheimer's disease. In the following days, they connected me with their Director of Marketing and Communications, who had a number of ideas regarding how we could partner. Initially, she wanted me to write a post for the Washington State chapter's blog, and she began trying to get a television interview for me.
I wrote the blog post, and after some edits, it's now ready to go. I believe they will post it in February. Basically, it's a snapshot of my experience in how I got to where I am now. It lists the factors I believe have led to my success.
The TV station is interested, but they want some confirmation that I'm not full of baloney. They want to interview someone with firsthand knowledge of my case, but no one wants to be on TV about it. The communications director is still trying to find someone through her contacts that will at least state that exercise and other factors can, in fact, produce positive results. This story continues to unfold, so stay tuned.
Some Challenges
I've had several hiccups in my exercise program over the past couple of weeks. First with "overtraining syndrome," and then with some surgery.
I had been advised by my orthopedist to give my body a rest at least one day a week. Instead, I stuck with a 7-day regimen and upped my game on weight training. Bad idea.
I began noticing that my legs seemed heavy all the time, so that walking was becoming more difficult. I'd never experienced anything like that before. I figured something was wrong, but I didn't connect it with my exercise. A search on the Internet led my to the discovery of "heavy leg syndrome," On reading about it, I became concerned, and decided that it was not to be ignored.
What causes heavy leg syndrome? Running down the list I came to "overtraining syndrome (OTS)." From all I read, OTS is not to be ignored -- it can lead to more serious problems. So what's the cure? First, take at least two weeks off from training to recover. Then take off at least one day a week after that. Time to listen to my orthopedist.
Taking that two weeks off has not been a problem.
After learning that Tamsulosin can cause dementia I dropped it. But this led to the realization that I would need the surgery that I've been postponing now for a couple of years.
I had the surgery on January 8, and the urologist left a stint in my prostate while it heals. The stint comes out on January 21. The doctor said that I can do the treadmill with the stint in, but I'm finding that's not the case. At this point, I don't anticipate getting back on the treadmill before January 22, but we'll see how it goes.
It's been several weeks now since I've done serious exercise, and I'm wondering about the consequences of that. I definitely feel (rather subjectively) that my cognition has been slipping. However, this could be due to the Valium and opioids they've given me. Hopefully I'll be sound of both mind and body in a couple of weeks.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)