well i am glad thats cleared up ladies! its so easy to feel vulnerable and sensitive when we wear our emotions and hearts on our sleeves:) bravo jane glad you saw your error -and yes i find myself too trying to compare staging with others input and abilities. i know my own is stage 7 now and can still say 'i love you' and still understands reasonably well but has major losses elsewhere. as we know no one stage or scale encompasses the many abilities or lack thereof as a one case scenario. its everchanging as are we during this journey and i think our quest for more knowledge is neverending. hugs all around! divvi
Nikki, I thought your post was wonderful and it helped so many of us. Please keep posting your progress about going on with your life while still dealing with AD. And thanks, Jane, for clearing up the misunderstanding. I'm still wondering what stage my DH is in. The doctor says mid stage but that covers a lot of territory. He still takes care of all his personal care, dressing, shaving, etc., still fixes things around the house and still does the yardwork. Short term memory and not ever knowing what day it is...sometimes what month or year are his symptoms, plus occasionally being confused (especially when we're out of town or in a different location or God forbid....in the hospital.) Others describe mid stage being much worse. Would anyone want to help me guess?
Nikki--I was so happy to read your post at the beginning of this thread. It has a completely different tone than your other postings in the past--there is hope for your future that I don't remember getting a sense of. Good luck in your surgery, and keep up the positive vibe.
Dazed--I think many doctors base their determination of the stage on the MMSE score. But as we all know, each patient is different, and the MMSE may not translate well into how someone functions day to day. From what you've described above, your husband sounds early stage to me, but I'm not a professional.
Dazed-- sounds like your DH is about where mine was when Dxd--4 beginning to see bits of 5. He has VaD, and with that there is a lot of now you see a problem-then you don't---but eventualy the new thing comes to stay. Keep in mind that each LO will manifest the symptoms in their own manner. Stella and I both believe our spouses are in about the same place, but hers has much more verbal loss, and mine more physical. All in the same Stage. I see the Stages as just an indicator of where we are (these are the losses most likely to go next--in any order) and where we're headed not as a progression chart where we would say, "Okay, now that's gone, this is next."
My FIL has been in late stage for years. The only ability he still has is to walk the hallways. I believe that is the only part of his brain not affected. He has not talked in years, is incontinent, can not take care of any personal needs including feeding himself: just walks the halls - a body but nothing in there (that we know of). Doctors are baffled - we are too. I do not want to live like that nor does my husband - it is no life. I mentioned that to my oldest sister and she sees nothing wrong with it since they are not aware. She aggravates me so much, especially when she says 'I know'!.