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Page 8 I*LAIM>KALKH-HKKALI>, WEDNESDAY . >IAY\B. 1985 ALZHEIMER'S she's never there." While Myron Sherman and his wife are currently dealing with the last chronic stages of Alzheimer's disease, another McHenry family is struggling with the middle phase of the affliction. A member of the family who wished to remain anonymous in order to insure privacy and avoid publicity, explained how he and his wife discovered that his father had Alzheimer's disease. "We have noticed, in particular, short-term memory loss for roughly four years now," he said. "We also began to notice an aloofness on his part. He tended to shy away from the person closest to himr his wife - my mother." The anonymous man and nis Alzheimer's-stricken father are both well-known in the McHenry community and are lifelong residents of the city. Hie man's father, who is in his mid-60's, made a career change in his early 60's. Shortly after the job switch, his mood also changed and he went into deep depression. The man took his father to many doctors, clinics and hospitals., He had him take all of the recommended neurological tests to see find out what was causing his father to spill drinks, snap out fir no apparent reason and lose all of his confidence, "Through the brain scan, they saw a loss of'brain cells in the logical and memory area of the brain," the man said. "The first thing we asked was, okay, you've diagnosed it as Alzheimer's. 'What kind of treatment are you going to prescribe?' And he said, 'There is no treatment."' Although the man's father currently still remembers events and dates from long ago, his finances are now mostly controlled by his son and his wife, and he has a "grave fear of becoming lost." J "It's a very difficult thing to accept that a man that was so eloquent and dynamic all of his life can't do these things anymore," he said, "You're forced to sit and watch brain cells die. I guess there is some hope that a treatment can be developed or that there are a lot of good years left. But there's also a high number of cases where it has deteriorated quickly." Fortunately, the man's father has not yet slipped into the final stage of Alzheimer's, and therefore is still tuned into his en­ vironment and can discuss subiects in simple terms. However, on bad days, communication can be jjifficult. 7 ¥ •(Continued from page I) "Do you flat out say, 'Da^, you're not capable of doing that?,"' he said. "No, you can't do that. Do you make up an excuse for why it can't be done? The mkn has his pride and you never want to do anything to hurt that pride It is because of this man's and his family's concern for preserving their father's dignity that the 65-year-old victim has never been told that he has Alzheimer's disease. The man is fairly certain that his father has figured it out and probably knows the condition of his health, but he argues that it would be very harmful to tell him outright. "We've been trying to bring back his self-esteem and keep his pride intact. If we told him, it would completely destroy him." a * n- *--• ^ yery beginnings of remain anonymous to , .usting to the short-term memory loss for the last three years. "I've seen my wife try to bake a cake, and she gets all the ingredients out," said the husband. "But by the time she gets two of the ingredients in, she forgets what she put in there. And those are the frustrations." But although there are other frustrations such as the woman constantly repeatingNquestions, losing track of her golf score and becoming tired easily, her personality has not changed and she has not fallen into a state of depression. Although it is a very difficult situation to know one's memory will fade more and more over time, jher husband said his wife is handling it well. ' "She hasn'tj said, 'Oh my God, Fin going to lose all of my friends. What do I do now?.' She has a lot of hope. What will be,will be is pretty much her attitude." But unfortunately what will probably be is a slowly progressive death of the brain. •, , ^ All of these McHenry families were aided by myriads of and were educated by ce Alzheimer's Group in ;nry medical specialists and programs such as the Fiunily Alliance Aizneimer s uroup in Woodstock. But there is only so much that can be done to fight the nasty disease. It isf persistant, irreversable and steadily carries an individual to a death of indignity. "God, she was a spic and span housekeeper, and neat about everything," reflected Sherman. "And now sne gets food all over herself ana she wets her clothes...Oh, it's a sad affair." CUP • A||a ••• iroexT aoor to uoi JOYNT 459-2462 FAMILY HAIR CENTRE 27 North Williams St. Downtown Crystal Lake (Next door to Don & Lu's) Invites your family to PERM SPECIAL! All Perms reg. $40 NOW *28" EXPIRES MAY 24,1985 •incl: cut, style, condition Helene Curtis or Zoto's Best Heat Perm FREE CURLING IRON FOR OUR MOTHERS Vi OFF Double Process Coloring or Frosting reg. $25 NOW '12™ No Appointment HOURS: Mon.Fri. 8:00-9:00; Sat. 8:00 5:00; Sun. 10:00 2:00 MOSQUITO (Continued from page 1) McHenry. The vote was unanimous. The council also voted to send a letter to Lt. Robert Kranz who recently opted to leave the Police Department on a disability pension. The matter was discussed in executive session. The council also voted to establish one more patrolman's position and opted for a new 28* day work period in the Police Department. Hearing date set for landfill The Regional Pollution Control Facility Hearing Committee for McHenry County has set a hearing date (jrf Wednesday, May 8 on tra/ Laidlaw Waste System, Inclr" landfill application. The hearing will be held at Building D, in the McHenry County Fairgrounds, at 9 a.m. If additional days are needed, they will continue every day, Monday through Friday, until completed. V REDUCED HOUSEKEEPING RATES FOR SR. CITIZENS OVER 15 YEARS OF SATISFIED CUSTOMERS • ALL HOUSEKEEPERS FULLY TRAINED, INSUREDS BONDED. KRYSTAL KLEAR CLEANING WHtRf NO HUB IS 100 BIG OR 100 SMALL QUALITY HOUSE CLEANING AT AFFORDABLE PRICES! "A MUST FOR EVERY ' * WORKING WOMAN" •WEEKLY HOUSEKEEPING •FLOOR STRIPPING _ •WINDOW WASHING * • OFFICE CLEANING •CARPET CLEANING •HOME SANITIZING BABY WE DO WINDOWS! ALL WINDOWS HAND WASHED TO A PERFECTLY "KRYSTAL KLEAR" SHINE GIVE A KRYSTAL KLEAR GIFT CERTIFICATE FOR MOTHER'S DAY! VJ WE TAKE PRIDE IN YOUR HOME! 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