another neurology appointment, video, study

ANOTHER NEUROLOGY APPOINTMENT
well its time again
have to go back for my 6 month follow up with the neurologist
this visit i dont mind
its usually in and out
how you doing
tap tap on the knee
refill the prescription
see you in 6 months

its been 15 months since ive been officially diagnosed with
mild cognitive impairment amnestic type
thought to be possibly due to alzheimers disease
only time will tell for sure if thats accurate

during that 15 months i may have noticed a subltle change but on
all those neuropsychological tests ive had over that time period
there has been no significant changes
thats like a cancer patient getting a negative pet scan
its reassuring

but as i know this can remain stable for awhile then take off
like it has with my younger brother
he sure has progressed during these last 15 months
he has gone from driving himself to now not driving himself
not getting himself dressed and requiring 24/7  monitoring
i think about him a lot and wonder if ill be like him and when
the decline will happen

but i have to continue to move forward and accept the fact that
i really dont know what will happen
only time will tell

i am doing all the things you and someone like me needs to do to
prevent or slow down the disease
exercise, control blood pressure,control lipids, maintain my weight,
stay mentally active, socialize, and take my dam donepezil (aricept)

am afraid to stop it because i know it could be the one thing that is
slowing this disease down for awhile before it eventually takes off
if i stop it i could see a more rapid decline in my status
so i plan to continue it despite the side effects
at least its now a cheap generic

i and my wife she are trying to get things done now in this early time
as we dont know what will happen
we have a lot of travel plans and this is the year we are getting all our
financial and legal ducks in a row
we have paid off our house and our cars and this next month
we should be totally debt free
maybe ill call the dave ramsey show so i can scream were debt free
on his radio show

we enjoy each other more now than we ever have before
and know to savour each day as it happens

ive continued doing this blog and spend a few hours on it everyday
i also walk 3-4 miles a day and have taken up hiking trails in this area
sorry ive missed some of the beauty around here over the last 10 years

ive also started a habitat for humanity project that i plan to follow
through to completion
ok so im going to learn some skills i can apply to the redo of my old barn

i will start tomorrow delivering meals on wheels in this area
this is something ive wanted to do
my mother always looked forward to those meals and those
brief interactions with the person that delivered the meal

i have tried to read a real paper newspaper a day and read several
online news websites every day
i also read a book every day if possible
ok my stack is kinda high in my to read stack
havent made the kindle transformation yet
like the feel of a book and love to dog ear those pages
but know i will eventually have to give in and use one

i stay busy maintaining my 10 acres here at the country n and
my organic garden
i will never get all this stuff done that needs to be done here
but its fun trying

so hope in the next 15 months that things will not progress any
that will be good news for my wife she and i

stay tuned

VIDEO
today after my neurology appointment i will be interviewed for a
possible short video that will be posted on the alzheimers research centers
website at ut southwestern medical center
they have plans to update the website so it will be more useful for patients
families and medical providers
am glad to get to be a part of it
will post the website when its done

ADNI-2 STUDY
if you follow this blog you know that i am in the
alzhiemers disease neuroimaging initiative-phase 2 study at the
alzheimers research study in dallas at the ut southwestern medical center
its a five year study thats an extension of phase 1
its probably the most important research study on alzheimers that has
ever been done
it will define how patients will be evaluated in the future and will trigger
some of the research that will eventually lead to the treatment prevention and
possible cure of this diseaese

in april i will have my 1 year follow up visit
i will have blood work, mri scan of the brain, a neuropsychological exam
(i call it the torture test) then will get to go to annual visits after that
no spinal tap or pet scans until april of next year

when i take the neuropsychological exam i know when i take it exactly
whether i have improved or not
they dont have to tell me the results because i already know
so in october i had not changed and hopefully in april the test will
show the same

the organicgreen doctor