Insight into Alzheimer

Caught the movie "Iron Lady" which depicts Margaret Thatcher in her current state afflicted with alzheimer; and with lots of flashbacks about her political career. Whilst Meryl Streep's acting is superb, many people opined that it is distasteful to make a film out of a person's sufferings even whilst the person is alive. Meryl Streep has put up a very strong performance which apparently portrays accurately the typical behaviour of an alzheimer sufferer. I am quite sure people of my age watching this movie will not help but feel a bit fearful of the possibility of ending up like her. Well, even an ex-PM with such a strong will is not spared.

In today's Sunday Times, Sumiko described her experience joining some nurses and care givers in a course on elderly care. They underwent simulated experiences of a person who has failing eyesight, is hard of hearing and is wheel-chaired bound. She walks away feeling more tolerant of the frequent noises coming from a male patient at a nursing home behind her house in the middle of the night.

As for me I do not need simulated experience to know what it means to be frail and old. I am already beginning to relate to some of their experiences. Scenes of the show that particularly draw me in are those when Thatcher feels very upset when she knows people are whispering about her forgetfulness and her loss of mental faculties. I find that I am also very sensitive about comments that may imply my lack of mental alertness. In fact I think it is a common fear amongst senior/pre-senior citizens that their memory and alertness is failing/weakening. In an unfortunate sense they also feel guilty and blame themselves for not keeping up with their mental health or feel somewhat irresponsible. To make matters worse they may also project the fear onto their partners. So it is not uncommon for old couples to call each other "blur" hence reinforcing their own irritation. Although amongst our friends and colleagues we have jokingly agreed to remind each other of weirdness in behaviour as we age, we must be mindful of how we do it given the sensitivity. The surest way to hurt the senior citizens' feelings is to pass frivolous remarks about them being forgetful, blur etc or implying they are useless. Instead we should encourage them to partake in activities that engage their mind.
Though the show "Iron Lady" may seem heartless to some it does give the audience a glimpse into the illness of alzheimer. It draws the audience's empathy and provides an insight into the patients' struggles, reminding us that the illness can afflict any aging person irrespective of gender and status including the "Iron Lady".