It just happened so fast . . .
My Grandma (I've called her Mammaw since the time I could speak, its a Southern US thing; they're from Alabama) has Alzheimers. Until now, I'd held out the hope that the medication she was taking was going to help her, or at least slow it down. I don't have that hope anymore. My mom said, last week, seeing her, she looked like she'd aged 15 years. She went to the doctor, and got some new medication, but it doesn't seem to be helping. Her short-term memory is gone. She can't even remember to go to the bathroom half the time. Bless my Pappaw, he's been taking care of her all this time, cleaning up after her, dealing with her mood swings, helping her remember things. Mom says he may need help, because he can't do it all on his own. If I was in better physical and mental shape, I'd offer myself.
Gods, it must be destroying my mother, I mean, it's her MOM. When she talked to me she was so calm, but it has to be killing her inside. She said the way the disease works is that it suddenly accelerates, and then can slow down just as quickly, but I'm still really worried. Why is it every old person in my family has to die of some horrible disease? My great Grandma died of a stroke and she already had dementia; it runs in my Mom's side of the family; she suffered a lot. My Grandad on my father's side hadt two heart attacks and the third one killed him; my Grandma on that same side died of a heart attack that the doctor had mistaken for an ulcer.
Why do people in my family always have to die from being sick? Why can't our bodies just wind down and let us go peacefully?