Alice in Wonderland meets Alzheimer's Disease

The Numbers are Growing...and There are No Survivors

by Alice Tease on 05/03/11

An estimated 5.4 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's Disease. However, that number is quickly multiplying-- every 70 seconds someone develops the disease. It is projected that this year alone there will be 500,000 NEW cases of Alzheimer's Disease diagnosed. If a cure is not found, by the year 2050 there will be 1 MILLION NEW CASES PER YEAR. Someone who has Alzheimer's can live 10 to 20 years with the disease, eventually progressing to the point where the Alzheimer's patient needs 24 hour care and can not perform basic tasks such as bathing, eating, and using the restroom with out assistance.

Alzheimer's disease does not just impact the Alzheimer's patient--it impacts everyone who is close to them. It is truly horrible to witness your loved one in a state where they are unable to recognize those that they love, and even more devastating when they no longer know their own self.

It is impossible to imagine the wrath of this disease without witnessing it firsthand. Some people mistake Alzheimer's for standard memory loss that comes with old age. Other people treat those with Alzheimer's as if they were no longer a human being and no longer worthy of inalienable rights. Still others, just wonder why the person afflicted with Alzheimer's 'bothers to go on living'--as if the person chose the disease. Often someone with Alzheimer's is not treated with love or compassion, because many people view them as 'just vegetables.' Facilities constantly abuse or neglect the patient with Alzheimer's, because they are in a condition where they no longer have a voice--unless a loved one intervenes and gives them one.

The National Alzheimer's Project Act was passed in January--however the terms of this act have not been fully fleshed out. The basic idea of the act is that the government needs to carve out a plan to address this disease that could potentially bankrupt the entire heath care system.

As of last year, for every $25,000 the government spends towards care for those with Alzheimer's and dementia, only $100 goes to Alzheimer's research. With the passing of the National Alzheimer's Project Act hopefully those figures will change. Therefore, it is essential that organizations like the Alzheimer's Association receive funding to further research--we need to find a cure for this devastating disease now, or we will never be able to face the impact that it would present as a global epidemic.

The numbers of those afflicted with Alzheimer's Disease are growing every 70 seconds, and there are no "Alzheimer's survivors"--therefore they desperately need advocates. We must advocate for a cure.

To learn more about Alzheimer's Disease go to www.alz.org

To view highlights from Larry King interviewing Seth Rogen about the Alzheimer's epidemic, go to http://www.cnn.com/2011/HEALTH/04/27/seth.rogen.alzheimer/index.html?iref=obnetwork

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A Different Kind of Wonderland...

by Alice Tease on 04/28/11

Alice Tease was created in response to my grandmother's battle with Alzheimer's Disease. As I cared for her, I witnessed her battle with the mind-robbing disease. The art I have created was inspired by her, as I found myself drawing parallels between Alzheimer's Disease and Alice's encounter in Wonderland.

The reality of an Alzheimer's patient is not the same reality that you or I live in. Within a matter of seconds, my grandmother could shift between coherence and incoherence. I found myself feeling her world transformed by encroaching nonsense. Familiar settings, and familiar faces, became foreign. Because it is more painful and frustrating to an Alzheimer's patient to just be constantly corrected, I found that it was often more beneficial to my grandmother to 'go along' with her delusions, (within certain parameters, of course.)

The delusions could be very dark, but once in a while, something would occur that was slightly humorous. For example, if she looked in the mirror in shock and insisted that the beautician had died her hair gray and that she was only 20 years old, it was more helpful to say something along the lines of "We'll make sure old Mary Lou puts the correct dye on next time", instead of "Don't you realize that it's natural to have gray hair when you're old?" And she would be appeased for the time being, which was important, because the more anxious an Alzheimer's patients becomes, the more severe the symptoms can escalate. So sometimes, caring for my grandmother felt like we had gone "Through the Looking Glass" or attending a nonsensical "Mad Tea Party."

So, feeling as though I was a guest in "Wonderland," I created pen and ink artwork and then featured my art on AliceTease totes, bags, t-shirts, jewelry, journals, photo albums, and other accessories. To help support the fight for a cure for this heartbreaking disease, 50% of the proceeds is donated to the Alzheimer's Association.

Thanks for taking a peak at our world of nonsense!

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