welcome to the organic green doctor blog

i am a family physician who was diagnosed with
early mild cognitive impairment(mci) amnestic type on december 21, 2010
this is a precursor to alzheimers disease
because of this diagnosis i have opted to stop practicing medicine
this blog will be about my journey with this disease
please feel free to follow me along this path
i will continue blogging on organic gardening, green living,
solar power, rainwater collection, and healthy living
i will blog on these plus other things noted to be interesting

Friday, September 28, 2012

why i walk, follow up neurology appointment

Walk to End Alzheimers
click here to donate or join 
the organicgreendoctor.com team

click here to find your local 
walk 

THE WILLIAMSON COUNTY GEORGETOWN WALK
ON SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 29 2012
HAS BEEN MOVED TO THE RECREATIONAL CENTER
AT THE EDGE OF THE SAN GABRIEL PARK
BECAUSE OF THE RAIN

REGISTRATION HAS BEEN MOVED UP TO 930 AM

WHY I WALK
the reason i walk to end alzheimers is because i would like to
see alzheimers end
its a devastating disease that affects the patient and those that
love them
there is no cure
yet
the money raised is the main source of revenue for the alzheimers
association
and the moneys are used to fund research and to provide
educational activities on this disease

it is the charity that i have directed my charity donations to and my personal
energies into

i am also involved because i have been affected personally

my mother died in the final stages of this terrible disease
and i first hand experienced the devastation this disease
can cause


my father although not officially diagnosed probably had the disease


my younger brother was diagnosed several years ago and is
in a long term care facility now


i probably have alzheimers disease

this is why i walk        to end alzheimers

FOLLOW UP APPOINTMENT
i drove 3 and a half hours to my appointment yesterday then
drove 3 and a half hours back home
its worth it that driving to dallas to get my care as
i am able to get as uptodate evaluation as you can possibly get

much of which is not available to most people
yet
but it will be soon

my biggest issue besides not knowing 100% whether i have
alzheimers or not is not sleeping well
its the side effects of the aricept (donepezil) that i take for
this possible diagnosis
(the earlier you start this medication the better it works and
the longer its effects will be ie i could gain time by taking
the medicine-that means symptoms will be delayed but
will eventually show up
but im willing to take the medication to gain that time )

i will be trying a new medicine to use as needed for sleep
hope it works
if i stop the aricept (donnepezil) for a while the sleep
disturbance goes away

i also wanted the amyvid pet scan
thats done for amyloid deposits in the brain
it looks like i may be able to get it through the manufacturer
who is looking for people to do the scan on as they train
people to read them
will write about the results when they are obtained
maybe i can get a photo of the scan also

the accuracy of this test is really affected by the quality of training
that the radiologist or neurologist has undergone

so it is my brain and i will get it tested

the video that was done that you can watch by clicking on
video on my story with alzheimers at the top of this blog is
being nominated for a national award from a national
neurology association

i also have tentative invites to do a talk to physicians and other
providers in a medical school in dallas and at a research
symposium in tennessee on alzheimers
my point of view will be from a physician with this possible
diagnosis and from the patient viewpoint
something they probably need to hear

until youve walked in those shoes you dont really know

the organicgreen doctor

1 comment:

  1. Congratulations on the nomination of the video. It is excellent. Also, good luck on the walk. Wouldn't you know you all would get much-needed rain on the same day?? Maybe that is a good omen!
    Susan in LR

    ReplyDelete