Posted by:
exminion
(
)
Date: January 30, 2019 06:01PM
See your primary care physician. He/she can determine if you need to see a therapist for depression, or (most likely) you are fine. The relief of finding out you do NOT have Alzheimer's can improve your present state of mine! Like insomnia, the more you stress about not getting enough sleep, the worse the insomnia gets. Doctors say that an early diagnosis can greatly improve the outcome, of any disease. There are things that can be done to help dementia--but I forget what they are!
Ask your doctor to give you a blood test, to determine if you have a Vitamin D or a Vitamin B deficiency, both of which can cause symptoms like you described. Even lack of exercise can cause symptoms like yours. I had all of these last symptoms, plus sleep apnea, which I didn't know about, so I was sleep-deprived. I thought it was old age, but my energy and alertness returned within a couple of months.
Denial--the wrinkle in the rug is not a hazard. Maybe it will go away on its own.
Normal--the wrinkle in the rug is a hazard, especially for old people, and should be taken care of as soon as possible.
Dementia--you might forget how or when the rug got wrinkled
Paranoia--you would think your husband deliberately put the wrinkle in the rug, to trip you.
Schizophrenia--Strangers jumped out of the TV, and put the wrinkle in the rug (I'm not kidding, this was a real case).
Alzheimer's--you are upset but can't remember why, and who is that person you are yelling at?
I was complaining to my therapist about how I can't do simple math in my head. When I was working, I would figure out percentages and estimate amortizations in my head, but now I can hardly help my granddaughter with her 7th grade math. My therapist said, "Could you do math in your head, when you were a SAHM, before you went back to work?" Some kinds of thinking comes with practice. I assume you are retired. Most retired people complain of "losing their edge" and "dumbing down."
This just might be your "new normal", but experts can tell you for sure. The fact that you are aware of traits you don't like in yourself, indicates that you are fine. You are never too old to change--that is true--and you can monitor yourself. I'm always having to deal with PTSD flashbacks, and knowing what to do really helps. I believe in therapy!