There is no cure for Alzheimer’s. It is a degenerative, progressive disease of the brain, and it results in cell death.
But McBean says it is a long journey, because people diagnosed with dementia or Alzheimer’s can live a long, quality, fulfilled life.
“It is a fatal diagnosis. It is a fatal disease. But the progression varies from person to person. So there are individuals who can live well for five to 10 years. Often times what we hear from families is when they really start noticing the symptoms, when they look back, two, three, sometimes even five years, they can see that the person has had symptoms for much longer than they realized. If you’re otherwise healthy, you can live a long and quality-filled life, even with a diagnosis of dementia,” McBean said.
If you would like more information about Alzheimer’s disease or Dementia, you can contact the New Brunswick Alzheimer Society.
“We have five resource centres across the province, but we also have a toll-free line that people can call. You can email us, or stop by one of those resource centres,” McBean said.
“We really encourage people not to wait. Sometimes when we hear from families, it’s when they’ve already reached a point where they are feeling overwhelmed. Maybe they’ve reached a point where the care for the person that they care for is becoming unmanageable. We really encourage people to reach out sooner than they think, because that way we can make sure they have information well in advance, and we can help them plan for the future.”
