Sleepless nights, worried about Alzheimer’s
Published: 7/27/2012 9:15 AM
Last Modified: 7/27/2012 9:52 AM
An MRI shows the "hippocampus," a part of the brain that is critical for memory and suffers damage from Alzheimer's disease.
At least, that’s what my grandmother thought was going on.
The other woman, in fact, was a caretaker, hired by the family to sit with my grandmother while she recovered from a stroke. It would be the last time I ever saw either one of them.
Another stroke took my grandmother’s life just a few weeks later, now more than 10 years ago.
But what really took my grandmother away from us, bit by excruciating bit, was Alzheimer’s.
I couldn’t have known it at the time, but I might have seen the first, early signs of the disease when I was still just a kid, many years before she showed any obvious symptoms.
Sleeping over at Grandma’s house, I would wake up in the middle of the night and notice her bustling around, restless and unable to go back to sleep.
She told me that she had always had a hard time sleeping, waking up a lot, tossing and turning, even as a little girl.
I’m the same way. Always have been, as far back as I can remember.
Now researchers have found evidence – although still inconclusive – that disturbed sleep patterns can increase the risk of developing cognitive disorders and dementia.
Getting too little sleep in the earlier years of life can speed up the aging of your brain, leading to earlier or more severe dementia later on, according to research presented this month at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in Vancouver, Canada.
On top of my family history, that’s pretty much waving a big red flag over my head.
But it gets worse.
When I wake up at night and can’t go back to sleep, I usually peek at my son, quietly, without turning on the lights, just to check on him.
And sometimes – actually, a lot of the time – he’s lying there, eyes wide-open, looking back at me.
We need a cure. If not in time for me, at least in time for him.
For more information about the Alzheimer’s conference: CLICK HERE.
Written by
Michael Overall
Staff Writer
1 comments displayed
