What would happen if….?

We don’t think about the affects of our actions when we are young. Without the experience to know better, we go into bizarre and sometimes dangerous situations.

So now at an older age the thought turns to dementia. It may be termed as Alzheimer’s or cognitive deterioration. What it really means is if you wake up you don’t know what to do.

As scary as it sounds, this confusion may come to you. How do you plan for it? Do you have enough support groups to take care of you?

We all know the body wears out. The joints don’t work the way they did when you were 20. The food you eat doesn’t burn off as well as when your metabolism was churning. Walking up steps may present a problem breathing or just sleeping. Bones get brittle and age slows us down.

But not being able to recognize a family member or your own shoes is the most freighting experience I believe any human being can face. To one day wake up and not know where you are or who the people around you are is sheer terror.

Imagine being found wandering around without any knowledge to address or family? Your identity can be maybe found through fingerprints but even that may not give authorities any leads to family or friends.

Many of those we pass over or incarcerate can be categorizes as just homeless or crazy, but they are children and brothers and sisters and perhaps fathers and mothers who have lost their way. A vast amount of assistance is available for those who are “confused” but in the long run, there is no cure but death.

If you watch people who have mental illness you may see some patterns. People who are “confused” want to find a rhythm to a daily routine. Look back, if you can, to their normal routines before dementia took hold and you will see what makes them happy. These are daily processes that made their life worthwhile.

No one really wants to look forward to this, but it may become a reality. Some of us may go, or pass, or die or however you want to declare it before our mind starts to wander, but the rest of us must weight this option in our family and insurance.