Doris

“My mother, Doris was the first “super woman/super mom” that I knew. She returned to full time nursing when I was in elementary school. Besides working 40+ hours a week, she ran the household, cooked meals, gardened, organized her 4 daughters to clean, sewed her and our wardrobes, kept my dad happy and was a sharp dresser. She never sat down and she never stopped moving!

Alzheimer’s changed that. Her expressive speech was affected very early in her 10 year illness. She seemed to be able to understand us but could not talk nor write for the majority of her illness. What was most difficult for me was the length of time between my long distance visits. Seeing her only 3 times a year, I encountered a different person the last 2-3 years of her life. It would take me several days to get to know her again as she was at that time, then I wouldn’t see her for another 3-4 months. I would return to visit with another person all over again. The woman who passed away was a very nice woman, but certainly not the person I knew and loved for most of my life.”

– Jo Mossburg-Walters