Story
Yesterday was lovely. Mike was able to come with me to the start which really gave me a boost. I had a really good run up to mile 22 which I got to in 3:56 and was heading to finish in 4:45 which was my target time. My back had started to hurt early on in the race and I think it must have taken its toll on me as I really slowed down in the last 4 miles although I did manage to sprint from the 200m mark which got me loads of cheers from the crowd. My time was 4:52:56 which means I beat my time from last year so I'm very happy. Fabulous day and the running conditions were perfect. The crowd support was superb too. Amazingly I feel fine today (except for my back which is sore) and I can walk up and down stairs unaided!
Well, middle-age madness has taken hold of me and I'm at it again! I am supporting the ART because of the splendid research work they do in trying to prevent the onset of Alzheimer's and other related Dementias.
My mother lived with the torment of vascular dementia for many years. My husband and I watched her turn from a kind, bright, intelligent and fiercely independent woman into a poor tormented soul, unable to do anything for herself.
Here is mum's story:
In 1997 my mother, then aged 81, had a series of minor strokes. Shortly after that we started to notice behavioural changes notably memory loss and confusion over everyday items. We thought it was just old age finally catching up with her. Then she started wandering and had violent mood swings. Although she already lived with us it became obvious that she couldn't be left alone for long and so I left my job to care for her. The next few years saw a gradual decline into the blackness that is 'vascular dementia'. My normally placid mum became violent and aggressive. She had psychotic incidents where she would see imaginary people (children hiding in her wardrobe, Russians sitting on the stairs, women stealing her clothes) and she would shout at them and sometimes throw things too. She was so convincing that we used to go and check that there wasn't anyone there! When my sister died 4 years ago mum did not know who Judy was or that she was her daughter. The moment 2 years ago that I realised she no longer knew that I was her daughter was a terrible time for me. In the last 2 years that she lived with us, life for us all became almost unbearable as she needed 24 hour care - she couldn't be left alone at all because she would either wander off or hurt herself, she never slept for more than 30 minutes at a time during the night, she became incontinent and incapable of doing anything for herself. Finally my husband and I realised that we could no longer provide her with the care that she needed and she went into a 'special' nursing home, or EMI Unit (Elderly Mentally Infirm). There she lived a zombified existence unaware of who she was, what she was or where she was. It was heartbreaking. She died last year, the day after her 89th birthday.
Thank you for taking the time to read my page.
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