Signs Starting to Appear

On this particular day, I came home from work and glanced into the living room before greeting Mum. She was sitting on the sofa with our family dog, watching her usual TV shows. Everything looked 'normal' so far, but something told me to look closer that day. I noticed her face appeared empty and drawn, lacking expression, with insufficient muscle tone to convey any emotion, and seeming too relaxed for someone who was awake. Had she had a minor stroke? Was this the beginning?

I tried to break the daze she seemed to be in. "Hi Mum, I'm home. Have you had a nice day?" She turned and smiled, softly nodding her head as she replied, "Yes, not done a lot." Her reaction times were beginning to slow down, and her ability to string together fuller sentences with longer words was becoming increasingly rare.

I put it down to the decline that comes with ageing, or possibly tiredness that day; dementia certainly never entered my mind at that point. My Mum was never very sociable; she seemed to enjoy the isolation of her own company aside from us, but I knew this was not doing her any good. I would be out at work all day, and then upon returning home, I would head straight to the gym, shower, have my tea, and go straight to bed to prepare for the next day.

I began to wonder how long this had really been going on. After all, I didn't see my Mum for any lengthy period throughout the week, aside from a quick chat during my lunch hour. Weekends were when we had our quality time together.

Now that I have had the time to piece together the jigsaw puzzle, I realise that these subtle signs were appearing five years prior to her diagnosis.

Could they have been lurking beneath the surface for even longer? Who knows.