Ch.26. Caregiver Meltdown.             I am writing this piece almost exactly 24 hours after I had a gigantic, ugly, scary meltdown. Things hadn’t been going well Read more

Ch.25“Keep on Trucking” but “I Won’t Regret a Thing”             Shopping today, I ran into a friend I’ll call Ellie whose husband Max is currently in Read more

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Ch.24. If You Don’t Laugh, You’ll Cry.             Pat and I attended our Lewy Body group in St. Paul today. Part way through someone I’ll call Read more

Ch.23. Adding Structure Challenges Lack of Initiative Caused by Lewy Body.             Q: “Hon, what would you like to do today?”             Read more

Ch.22. Sudden Mood Changes.             When Pat was first diagnosed with Lewy Body I asked several people this question: What is the hallmark of Lewy Body? Read more

Ch. 21    Pat and Ron Confront the Corona Virus           I am writing in early March 2020, about one month after the Corona virus emerged in Read more

Ch.20: Acceptance: Yes; Passivity: No             Pat and I recently attended the Meeting of the Minds dementia conference in St. Paul, MN. There were about 1,000 Read more

Ch.19. I’m Scared to Travel Away from Pat.             Pat and I have spent the great majority of time together since we both retired and Pat Read more

Ch. 18: Not Driving – A Blow to Your Sense of Self.             Do you remember how proud you were when you passed your driver’s test, Read more

Ch.17. Slightly Unusual Behaviors (SUBs).               Pat has never been a model of conventionality. In fact, she’s sometimes     decidedly unconventional. For example, for years Read more

 Ch.16. Depression and Lewy Body.              It’s February, 2019 in Wisconsin as I write this piece. There’s at least a foot of snow on the ground everywhere Read more

Ch.15 First Pat and then Ron Join a Memory Choir   First Pat Joins a Memory Choir.             August 2019. Several months ago, Pat and I attended a memory care Read more

Ch.14. Waking Dreams, RBD, and Sleep Deprivation.              Recently I awoke around 1 a.m. feeling chilly. Oddly, the blankets had disappeared. I heard noises from Pat’s Read more

Ch. 13. Mortality.                      Pat and I attend in St. Paul a Lewy Body group for people with Lewy Body and their Read more

Ch.12. We Are Still a Team.                     I’m writing this passage on the coldest day in decades here in rural Western Wisconsin: minus Read more

When I was young, I had difficulty learning how to tie shoelaces. Years later someone told me it takes 32 separate physical actions to tie those laces. No wonder it Read more

 Ch. 9 Questions for the New Year: 2019 and then 2020  Note: This essay was originally written in early 2019, then updated at the end of the year. 2019 A new year has just Read more

Ch.9. Physical Intimacy: Hugs and More.             My friends and family have been a wonderful support for me during these Lewy Body days. Recently I was Read more

Ch. 8.  “Showtime.”              In our book club the book of the month was The Namesake, by Jhumpa Lahiri. It is about a family that immigrates Read more