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| Mon, 01-07-2008 - 11:50pm |
We have a patient, and long-time friend, who was recently diagnosed with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. Eight weeks ago he and his wife took a 2000 mile trip through the northern states and Canada. Six weeks ago they were cruising in Italy. While on the cruise, he started having trouble with his memory and felt like bugs were crawling all over him. After he got home, the memory issues continued until he finally decided to stop driving. He could no longer do his checkbook. One day he was working on his computer, a favorite pasttime...five days later, he couldn't remember how to turn it on. Six weeks after this started, he's bedbound, cannot speak, does not recognize anyone or anything.
C-J is related to the same organism that is implicated in mad-cow disease. It can develop from several sources but the main one is from food, primarily beef. These folks were great travelers, Red Cross disaster workers for many years, and had spent time in a lot of places. Unfortunately, there are many places where, when cows have been identified with the disease, other cattle owners respond by quickly slaughtering their cows and selling the meat before they can be tested. This is very likely what happened.
It all happened so fast. On a Friday his wife was asking me for a referral as soon as possible to a neurologist to check the memory deficits. By Monday, they knew there was nothing that could be done. It was one of those kicks in the pants that we need, or I do anyway, once in a while to make me realize just how precious life is and how much of it I let slip by in a negative or inconsequential way.
It's raining tonight. I think I'll go out and walk in it. I'll enjoy that...and then I'll REALLY enjoy the hot bath afterwards!
I hope you wake up tomorrow to a day filled with amazing things...and that you're fortunate enough to be able to enjoy them.
Kat

&n
So sorry to hear about this poor man.... how very sad.
That is so awful, I knew about C-J...basically eats away at the brain..I am so sorry for this man and his wife
but you are right..we do need reminders sometimes of how precious life is...
I hear so many bemoan growing old and remember the Irish saying not to because "so many are denied the privilege."
I just have to remember my own mom, who died at 58...which is my age now
It's a virtual slap upside the head!
thanks for your thoughts
hugs
Dutch
Dutch
What a good reminder...and how sad!
Hi Kat
I am so sorry about your friends. What a blow to be so active and enjoying life and suddenly find yourself bedridden and unable to know those that love you.
Life certainly gives us no guarentees and we all need that kick once in a while to remind us to enjoy life we only get one time around.
Hope that walk in the rain was a good one and the hot soak in the tub the perfect ending to your day.
Love
Kat, I'm sorry to hear about your friend. We never know what the future holds, so live each day to the fullest. Wonderful thought, but harder to do than it looks. It sounds like he had an amazing life, living it the way he wanted to.
Jan
I think you hit the nail on the head, Jan. We all know this...but life kind of gets in the way. I do find, though, that when something like this happens, it does make me appreciate things more. I may not be able to get out of working too much or cleaning the house too much (like THAT would ever happen) but there are things in every day that I could enjoy if I let myself. Today is a gray and blustery day, but I think our patient would love to feel that wind on his face. I need to remember that when I go out to my car...maybe not hurry to it quite so fast.
Kat