Meet my Dad, Charles Geren Roberts.
He loved God, he loved his family, and he loved life.
But that life was robbed of him after being officially diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease in 2013. We had no idea what we were getting into, what the future would hold, or where this journey would take us. You would think we would have had some idea of what to expect as my Dad’s dad and his dad each had suffered from the disease, three generations of first born Roberts males each diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, but we did not. What we would soon learn is that my dad was definitely not the norm, which probably isn’t shocking to anyone that knew him, but is there really a norm with Alzheimer’s?
They say hind sight is 20/20. So many what if’s. What if he had eaten better? What if he had kept a regular sleep schedule? What if he had exercised more? What if he hadn’t been in a high stress job? What if he had gone to the doctor sooner? What if he hadn’t been so stinkin’ stubborn?! These are just a few of the initial questions we would ask, but as the months would progress, we would begin to develop more questions that I hope to get into with this blog in the hopes that we can help any other families out there navigating this awful disease.
I wish my Dad could have been the first survivor of Alzheimer’s, but sadly that would not be the case.
He fought.
He fought hard.
He was always hopeful that he was going to win, that he’d beat this disease, and now, since he cannot, I will continue that fight for him.
I hope you will join me as we Navigate Alzheimer’s together.