They have both come a long way in their understanding and acceptance of Keith’s condition, and for that they give much of the credit to the support of the Alzheimer Society of B.C. and to local Coordinator Phyllis Dyck. The more they learned the more they realized that the diagnosis was not a death sentence at all, but a challenge like others that they have taken on together in 24 years of marriage.
Keith was apologetic and a little frustrated at first. “I’m a fast thinker and my memory was not keeping up with my thought process. There was frustration there,” said Keith. But this gave way to acceptance through education, support, lifestyle adjustments and medication so that Keith is now able to joke about his condition and wants to help others who suspect that they are suffering from Alzheimer’s and to help remove the public stigma associated with it.
The Vindens became aware that there was a problem when Keith wouldn’t respond to Netty when she addressed him if he was reading or watching T.V. “I would put her on hold until I was finished what I was doing,” he said, “because I knew I couldn’t do two things at once. I was subconsciously choosing not to hear her. It happened so often that it got aggravating to her and she would say, ‘Are you listening to me?’”
His sister-in-law, who visited each year, noticed that Keith interrupted her when she was talking, a thing he had never done before. According to Keith this was because “If I waited for her to finish I wouldn’t remember her question.”
Netty also observed that although Keith had always been “even-keeled” and never got upset, he had developed yo-yo like mood swings.
The specialist told them that these changes were key observations. He said that family history is important, with changes in behavior noticed over time. He said that it can be a genetic problem, but isn’t necessarily and that any symptoms may or may not be indicative of dementia in a given person.
 “We went to the support group,” said Keith, “and it was good to know that I wasn’t alone. I was encouraged to come out of myself. Others were walking the same road.” Keith found that interests he already had were valuable for offsetting the onset of the disease. He was a member of the Vernon PC Users Club and used his computer for search engines, spreadsheets, finances, writing and poetry. He also enjoyed crossword puzzles, scrabble and board games.
The Vindens learned everything they could and made decisions to alter their diet, to exercise more and to take medication. As a result the symptoms have progressed very little since the diagnosis and their life is full. They are facilitating the Early Stage support group and the Caregiver group, in an attempt to encourage others.
“People need to be encouraged to come out. They don’t want people to know about it,” said Keith. “If one partner is in denial the other needs to take charge. The earlier you have it checked the better because there are very effective medications. If you wonder about it and your doctor asks first ‘how old are you?’ ask for a second opinion because memory loss is not what you can expect with old age.”
He said that memory should return if loss of it is due to stress, but there is no cost to get the testing done. “We meet so many people who say, once it’s identified, ‘I wish we had done this years ago.’ Alzheimer’s doesn’t change IQ, but a high IQ can mask the symptoms longer.”
Keith was a teacher and then a principal for 21 years in Victoria, B.C. He went from there to a Bible college in Calgary, where he met Netty, and then to a successful career in sales in Vancouver. Nowadays he keeps busy with a productive garden, a toy poodle, many friends and his computer. He and Netty travel to Manila in the Philippines regularly to see her daughter there, who surprised Keith this year with a Christmas present of a book of his own poems entitled Diddly-Squat Ditties. He was thrilled.
The Walk for Memories in Vernon on January 27 will be dedicated to Keith. He intends to joke a little when he addresses the participants because he believes that a sense of humour is vital. “I can joke about it and be upfront about it,” he said. “It’s my goal to let people know it’s not something to be scared of.”
For more information about monthly information sessions in the Okanagan call 1-800-634-3399 or visit www.alzheimerbc.org.