This was the thought for the week at  http://www.alzheimersweekly.com/   It is so true!

Yesterday we had our Birthday Bash.  I had decided I wanted to make this a ‘special’day for everyone there, not just Ralph and me.  Jim bought a big bag of balloons, and we inserted a ten dollar bill in each balloon before blowing them up.  At the party, everyone was given a plastic toothpick and got to pick out a balloon out of the big plastic bag.  At the count of three everyone popped their balloon…..and got their surprise.  Five year old Kyra had picked the extra special balloon which had twenty dollars in it. 

This was indeed the most ‘fun’ birthday party I’ve had in years.  Of course I screwed up with my camera again, and ended up with a video of my feet, so I’m afraid I can’t share with you the picture of everyone holding a balloon and toothpick!  That would have been a photo for my Memory Book for sure!

Everyone who has the opportunity of enjoying Jim’s Calico salad will be very relieved to hear that we have finally hit upon the perfect solution in regards to my previous posting, about losing bits and pieces of thumbs and fingers in my job as sous chef.  Today I used the Faberware electric blender, making sure I didn’t overdo my job…..and still kept most of the veggies in a diced form, rather than completely mulched.  Jim has taken over dicing the apples and oranges and I’m wearing no band-aids today. 

Tomorrow we head to Toronto, with our strictly vegetarian Calico salad, to join Jim’s family in a backyard wedding for Jim’s brother Ken and Amber.  So far the weatherman seems to be listening to all our requests for a beautiful day.

Sunday we have our Birthday Bash at son Dave’s.  Ralph was my birthday present 34 years ago….and so far we’ve only missed one birthday together.  So lots of fun family times in the next few days.

I just may have to retire as Jim’s sous chef.  Today is the Annual Spaghetti Dinner at the campground, thanks to Pat and Dayton, our Hosts and owners of the Johnson’s RV Park.

Jim always takes his famous Calico Salad to any gatherings (which is a glorified macaroni salad with more fruit and veggies than macaroni).  I usually spend about an hour cutting up all the goodies to go into his salad.  But I’m having increasing problems keeping my fingers out of the way while I’m slicing and dicing.  My brain can’t keep track of fingers and cutting at the same time.

I did try our Faberware blender once, but everything came out smaller than the chef liked.  So this morning after slicing my thumb and the end off one finger, I thought I had figured an ingenious way to save my fingers…..and ended up just about slitting my wrist.

So…back to the drawing board…..there has to be a way for klutzy people like me to still function….keeping all our appendages intact.

I wanted to share my observations about hyperacusis, which is a condition caused by the brain not filtering sounds.

Most days the drug Baclofen keeps things down to a dull roar.  But then there are days like today, when every tiny sound is amplified a million times in my brain!

Brushing my teeth this morning was a startling adventure to say the least, not to mention the thundering I experienced having my shower.  I wince when Jim coughs, and had to don my earmuffs when he started puttering in the kitchen.  I really think I’m going to have to get rid of my nice set of Corelle dishes.  They have this lovely design that is painted on…..and when you move a utensil across the painted section….it is very loud!

I went back for a nap for an hour, hoping I would be back to normal, but no such luck. I had had a bad night with jumping out of bed starting about 3am to get rid of leg cramps, so definitely a nap was called for!

On a day like today, not only are the sounds amplified, but I hear a very loud zapping sound which reminds me of an electric current.  I thought maybe I was hearing my pulse, but it doesn’t correspond with the heart beat. 

So…..guess I’m just a live wire….with a short circuit.  

Jim and I made the three hour trip up to Ottawa on Monday to pick up our son Lane, who had spent the weekend visiting with our son Ralph and his family.  Of course I managed to arrange a gathering at the Chinese Buffet there, which also included my sister June and her hubby.  The meal was fantastic as usual….and it was good to see everyone.

Then we did a quickie visit to my brother Dave’s house, pictured above with our son Lane.  Dave and Margaret are in the process of renovating their home in Ottawa.  We can hardly wait to view the finished project in another two months.

Lane and I spent two full days on our laptops…..teaching him various tricks that we’ve learned, and of course introduced him to pogo.com.  Lane even managed to teach me backgammon, and I whomped him a few games. 

Jim and Lane headed off to Toronto today to visit Jim’s family, with Lane flying off to Vancouver later this afternoon.  Jim plans on staying the night there, and help his sister with the yardwork at the parent’s place. 

I, on the other hand, get to stay home and do nothing, just relax.  Well, I might do some laundry, bake some bread, and vacuum, along with my pogo games, but my brain is having a relaxing day!

HAPPY 39TH BIRTHDAY DAVE

What a fantastic weekend…with our five sons all together again.  Gene and Lane and grandson Justin flew in from Vancouver on Thursday.  So Friday we had the five sons, three of the daughter in laws, ten of the grandkids, and four of  Dave’s foster kids at our winter home.

The weather was perfect for a lot of outdoor activities for everyone.  Dave’s pool was well used, along with the four wheelers, our tandem bike and Ralph's inflatable gym. 

Saturday the sons had a golf tournament, and Jim and I stayed home at our nice quiet summer trailer.  Sunday, we had hoped to have a day at the beach with Ralph’s new boat, but Mother Nature decided we needed a day of rain, so the day was spent back at our winter home.

I managed really well…..visiting here and there…then back to my quiet side of the house.  I could always tell when I had enough as I would start stumbling over what I was trying to say, so then it was time for a brain break again.

We’re hoping to have all five sons and their families home again at Christmas for our next Family Get-Together!   

My sister June and hubby Nick arrived down from Ottawa on Thursday with their motorhome…..we had a lovely visit with them.  I introduced them to pogo.com, and we lost Nick in his world of Bridge!

On Sunday we travelled to Toronto to visit Jim’s folks, and enjoyed a birthday party for his older brother Don.

Monday we not only did a 10 mile bike ride on our tandem, but also a kayak ride…..it was a beautiful day.

Tuesday was a complete brain dead day….accompanied by nausea and the runs.  I slept off and on most of the day.  So….did I just have a bug…or was this the result of too many days enjoying myself?  Or, as my friend Kathy mentioned…..I seem to be getting sick every month just around the full moon cycle.  Very strange indeed.

Oh well…I’m back to my normal self today….and heading to Belleville for shopping and Chinese Buffet!  Life is good!

Time to do an update on my cinnamon experiment.  I’ve been taking 1gm morning and night now for four months.  I have no idea if this might be why I’m doing so well.  After reading more about it, I see where others are taking 3gm a day, so I’m now upping my intake to 3gm also.  So 3 of the 500gm capsules morning and night.  I’ll see how this works.

I’ve also started cycling again with Jim….and so far I’m still having the same burning and cramps in my legs…no more or no less….so that’s good.

A new development would be spasms in my hands….where a finger or thumb goes into a spasms, and the muscle pulls in tightly.  This isn’t painful at all…and I can just pull the finger or thumb out again….and seems to stop the spasm effect.

My light sensitivity seems to come and go….so I just keep my sunglasses very handy. 

So all in all…I’m doing GREAT!

HAPPY CANADA DAY

The sun is shining and the birds are happily chirping, and you couldn’t ask for a nicer day.

I’ve had to don my clip-on sunglasses once again.  The light sensitivity I experienced two years ago has returned with a vengeance.  So the curtains are all drawn, the brightness on my laptop is turned way down, and I’m wearing my clip-ons.  Without them on, I have tremendous pressure in the frontal lobes, and my brain feels ‘startled’ when I move my eyes. 

I received an email from a friend the other day, saying she had been missing my postings at the FTD forum website.  I was totally shocked that I had forgotten about this website that I used to visit frequently……me, who prides myself on having this fantastic memory!  It was really strange, because I had just been wishing a week ago that I had someplace to go to talk to others with FTD… and it still didn’t register.  Oh my!  So I’m now back posting at the www.ftdsupportforum.com

And I really do have a good memory….it just needs a nudge now and then!

Jim and I celebrated our 28^th anniversary on Monday.  Wow, twenty eight years....pretty good eh?  We’ve decided to buy ourselves a 24 inch monitor for Jim’s computer.  Hmmmm….too bad they didn’t have a 28”.   That would have been appropriate I think.  We’ve come a long way since our first 13” for sure.

I’m not sure if I’m having increased problems conversing with others, or maybe it’s just the fact that I’m conversing with others more frequently, since we’ve moved to our summer home.  I mostly limit myself to just one-on-one conversations with friends here, but even then I struggle.  The words come into my head and get processed, and then I’m supposed to get the right responses back out…..and this is where I’m struggling.  Of course, my ideal world…..everyone would walk around with small keyboards….and we would type our conversations back and forth.  My brain seems to do well with that kind of conversing!

Our summer is rolling along nicely.  We made our weekly trip over to our winter home yesterday for Jim to do his trimming around the gardens and fences, a chore he’s taken upon himself to help Dave out.  That lets me get a couple of hours of visiting in with Dave and the grandkids.  Sandy and Melissa and the five kids stopped in last Sunday for a short visit on their way home to Bowmanville!  The kids loved our home on the water.

We had our Alzheimers Support Group on Tuesday.  It’s always nice to see how everyone else is making out, and share ideas with each other.

It was interesting to hear that they all agreed…….you’re better off not telling people you have alzheimers.  In fact, we all work extremely hard at appearing normal when around others.  They agreed if we told people we had a 'brain cancer' or some sort of brain disease, we would have people rallying around us to see how they could help.  Hmmmmm……Society is indeed strange!

This is my first Journal entry on my new Dell Vostro 1700…..my early birthday present. 

Our son Ralph ordered it from Dell, and using a special program he has, was able to come into my laptop at home from his home 3 hours away, and retrieve all the files from my old laptop and install them on my new one.  So today we met Ralph and family two hours from our place and exchanged laptops.  Very exciting!  Jim and I checked out a couple of Dollar Stores, while waiting for Ralph to arrive, and stocked up on some super deals.

It was great to see Ralph and family….and get some hugs and kisses from the grandkids.  We did a bit of shopping with the kids but after about fifteen minutes we had to kiss them all goodbye and head out of the store.  My brain had come to a screeching halt! 

So now I’m sitting here in the van, with my headphones on, thoroughly enjoying my new laptop, while Jim is cruising down the highway. 

A lovely weekend, weather wise....a rough weekend brain wise! I have mentioned before how little problems become humongous issues to me and I can’t seem to control the anxiety I’m feeling. Our wireless quit Saturday evening, and unfortunately our server doesn’t provide tech support on weekends or nights. So even though I used dial up all weekend, and did fine with it, I just kept getting madder and madder at the injustice of it! $50 a month and no tech support! So of course first thing this morning I’m on the phone asking who I speak to about this issue. Well, I need to speak to the owner...and she’s on holidays!

Poor Jim.....I must admit he handles me well! I think when he’s had enough of my ranting, he jumps on his lawnmower for some peace and quiet....with his headphones on! He he

I finally got an appointment for an ultrasound on my legs to check blood flow.....August 10^th. Good old Canada and our health system! Oh well, I’m finding if I just sit and do nothing, my legs aren’t burning......so here I’ll sit.....and play Pogo.

We are finally all settled in to our summer home at Johnsons’ RV Park. The weatherman is not cooperating at providing lovely, sunny days for us yet, and we’re having to resort to the use of our little heaters to keep us warm and cozy.

Jim has managed to get out for about five evening kayak rides so far, and several bike rides. Even managed his first twenty mile ride yesterday. He’s so good. He got a new toy this year...a Toro 4200 riding mower....and he’s having such fun cutting everyone’s lawn in the campground. He said it’s like dancing.....all the pirouetting he’s doing!

I’ve had several rough brain days.....and have been going back to bed several times a day. At this last nap an hour ago, I was trying to figure out what is going on. My brain feels like it’s shuddering, and the tinnitus I’ve had for years is absolutely deafening with the ringing.  After an hours nap it is back to normal.

When I googled "brain shuddering", I found it used to describe a side effect common with several drugs, so I guess my feeling of brain shuddering was correct. Only thing is, I’m not on any of the drugs that were mentioned.

I’m thinking this is being caused by the heater fan running all day....and my hyperacusis.....so I’m wearing my headphones all the time now....and we’ll see if that helps.

We had an interesting support group meeting at our Alzheimers Society office yesterday. It’s really great when we can share our experiences and how we’re dealing with various areas of our journey.

One of the interesting things we discussed and that has been highlighted in the news is the use of ibuprofen to reduce the risk of alzheimers.

Ibuprofen Linked to Reduced Alzheimer's Risk

(Source: AAN) - Researchers examined over five years of data involving the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.

They found that people who used ibuprofen for more than five years were more than 40 percent less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease; the longer ibuprofen was used, the lower the risk for dementia; and those who used certain types of NSAIDs for more than five years were 25 percent less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease than non-users.

You can click on the link here to read all about their findings:

http://www.aan.com/press/index.cfm?fuseaction=release.view&release=624

However, another article just came out yesterday:

Anti-Inflammatory Drugs Inefficient in Preventing Alzheimer's
(Source: EfluxMedia) - Just one week after researchers from Boston University School of Medicine stated in a study that use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) for five years was linked with a 24 percent reduced risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, results of a clinical trial show that neither Celebrex nor naproxen (both belonging to the class of NSAIDs) preserves mental function.

Moreover, it was found that naproxen (Aleve and Naprosyn) may even have a harmful effect on cognitive function.

So....guess you need to watch which anti-inflammatory drug you’re taking. I’ve been on naproxen for ten years....ah......time to quit I think!

Just back from our trip to Kingston to see the surgeon about Jim’s abdominal aortic aneurysm. Definitely Jim is going to require surgery, but at this point it’s still a waiting game. The doctor wants to wait until it has grown from 4.0 cm to 5.5 cm. He assured us there is no chance of it rupturing at this point. So for now we carry on with the ultrasound every six months....and keep an eye on things.

We also went to the ear specialist yesterday. I have a 25% hearing loss in both ears, which he said is borderline for getting hearing aids. But since I have hyperacusis, and spend all my time trying to keep sounds out of my head, he agreed we certainly wouldn’t be bothering with hearing aids at this point.

We did pick up another pair of ear muffs at the Industrial Supply place....these have a decibel rating of 30....and are lovely and quiet. Jim has discovered the joys of highway driving, wearing my 27 dcb earmuffs!

So now we’re packing up for our move to the summer trailer......the next journal entry will be from Johnson’s Marina and RV Park.

This was the Thought for the Week at the Alzheimers Weekly site... http://www.alzheimersweekly.com

I thought it very appropriate for many of us on our journey in  life.

Five years ago, while undergoing testing for some problems Jim was having, they discovered an abdominal aortic aneurysm.

An aneurysm is when a blood vessel becomes abnormally large or balloons outward. The abdominal aorta is a large blood vessel that supplies blood to your abdomen, the pelvis, and legs.

Jim has been going every six months for an ultrasound, monitoring the size of this aneurysm. It started off about 2cm and has now grown to 4.5 cm......so we go to see the surgeon this week to see what needs to be done at this point.

The weather hasn’t been cooperating for our move to the summer trailer. In fact we woke to frost on the ground again this morning....definitely not trailer weather! Jim is monitoring the forecasts and will decide when he thinks we can safely move ourselves down there without freezing our little tootsies off!

This has been a strange couple of weeks.  I'm having more brain confusion....similar to a year ago.  I can't pinpoint anything I'm doing differently.  I've been struggling for two weeks to keep my Brain Age out of the 40's.....and haven't been able to get it back into the high 20's at all, even trying it at different times of the day.  I had thought it might be because I'm not sleeping well because of my leg problems.  But I took an aspirin last night to see if thinning the blood gave me less pain....and I had a good nite!  Have no idea if the aspirin did the trick or not, but I'll keep taking it in case.  But had a Brain Age of 42 today....so even sleeping well didn't improve my brain!   Oh well....I'll keep working on this problem...see what solution I can find.   My friend Kathleen from chat introduced me to Pogo.com this week.....more brain exercise!  I'm totally hooked on BINGO of course!  And if you're ever in there, just look for me....I'm the Demented Lady!

After all my research on hyperacusis, it seems baclofen is a drug which helps it.

Baclofen is a muscle relaxer and an antispastic agent.  Baclofen is used to treat muscle symptoms caused by multiple sclerosis, including spasm, pain, and stiffness.  Baclofen may also be used for treatment for hyperactive auditory disorders such as tinnitus and hyperacusis.

Now baclofen is the drug my family doctor put me on last spring to see if it helped with my leg spasms and cramping. But a month later my neurologist took me off it again, as she said it might interfere with my brain problems.

So......I had my prescription for baclofen refilled.....and took one in the afternoon...and one in the evening....and VOILA.......the noises weren’t reverberating through my head. As well, my legs were fantastic throughout the night! It was amazing!

So I took one morning and night the next day as well......my head was good....but didn’t seem to help the legs the next night at all....in fact they were worse than usual. Then last night again....they were good!

So......even though baclofen is recommended for spasms and leg cramps....there doesn’t seem to be a pattern for when it works or not......but the main thing is.......I’m hardly having to wear my ear muffs at all! Certainly, I’m not back to anything like I experienced for two days!

I’m having increasing problems with sounds. In fact, I’m having to wear my ear muffs most of the time now. The fridge, freezer, ceiling fan and fan from the wood pellet stove seem deafening by times. I’ve done some research on it.....and this is what I’ve discovered.

Hyperacusis: A Hearing Impairment

Most people know of only one type of hearing impairment - deafness. Hearing no sound at all can be very difficult but looking at the opposite side of it, hearing too much may also prove to be as hard. Hyperacusis is defined as the intolerance to normal and everyday sounds. Hyperacusis is said to be caused by a malfunction in the sound regulatory system of the brain.

I guess this is similar to the malfunction I had two years ago when I had a problem with sensitivity to light, and had to wear sunglasses in the house. So maybe this ‘malfunction’ too might pass in time! In the meantime I’m going to curl up in my corner with my headphones on.....and wait for the noise to stop!