42°
O'Brien, has had more than 35 years of newspaper and magazine experience as a writer, editor, investigative reporter, and publisher, and now he is one of the many millions in the U.S. with Alzheimer's disease. Most people with Alzheimer's are not aware of what is happening to them or their surroundings. After a diagnosis and being told, "you have Alzheimer's and there is no cure,"many do not fight the disease. This is not the case with O'Brien. He is in the battle of his life and not going down without a fight. In his memoir, "On Pluto: Inside the Mind of Alzheimer's" he speaks freely about what it is like to lose your mind and to see slices of your very identity slipping away piece by piece.
"While I have the facility to do so, I want to communicate to others, to those who will face this demon someday and those who love them, that with the proper medical direction, life strategies, faith, and humor, one can prevail," O'Brien says. In 2009, he was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's. As Alzheimer's began taking over his brain and he began experiencing moments of "just drifting," he re-invented that familiar place where he could go that wouldn't didn't scare him, a place where he tries hard to unravel the complexities of this mind-robbing disease. Because he continues to exercise his brain, he remains highly functional.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Rye and receive free news updates.
