Gabriel

Emily, the doctor at the memory assessment research service explained it to me this way. It is not all off or on. It is intermittant, especially in the earlier stages. It is like being in a room... you and I have the big light on and we can see everything. With dementia the light is more directed and flashes on and off. So that conversation you just had didn't occur when the light was on or it was not directed in that direction.... and therefore no memory and the question is repeated. But the doctor's appointment information entered the brain when the light was on and directed that way and therefore she remembers. Since there is not as much cluttering the mind it is crystal clear. As time goes on.... those moments when the light is on becomes less and less frequent. This also explains why there are bits of truth in the tales they weave. They are only getting part of the picture and have to create the rest to make sense of it.

My Mom remembers that Dad fell in the bathroom and that he injured his arm. That was a visual input and she processes visual input much better than auditory. The details of the fall were given to her later... and they have changed every time she tells them because she has no clear understanding of what she heard. During that same time she was obcessed with a small sharp place on a tooth. This went on daily for over a week and through three dental visits. Three days after it was fixed.... she had NO memory of having anything wrong with her tooth.

So memories are made at random and vanish just as randomly. With no reason to why some things stick and others don't or why some stay and some disappear. And yes... it is different for each of patient. You will learn your Mom's pattern..... and then it will change as the plaque and tangles take a little more. I so hate this disease!!!!

Love, deb