Carlyn's Diary: March

It’s only three months into the year but there have been some major happenings in my life. For starters, I’ve decided to go back to school and study journalism and my grandma has come to live with us. In the first matter, I decided to go back to school because I want to be a better writer and I want to work with adults. I have worked in the education industry for six years in various roles and I want to have a change. I will be working as a substitute teacher while I study journalism to pay the bills.  After graduation, I hope to pursue a career in journalism with my education degree to fall back on.

 My family and I recently found out that our grandma has Alzheimer’s disease. It’s a disease that affects brain function which results in diminished thinking ability and memory loss. There is no cure for the disease at the moment. We didn’t know she had it because we live interstate. We only learnt about grandma’s condition when her symptoms became worse.

It was sad seeing grandma again when she first arrived. She had once been an impeccably dressed and lively woman only to become a fragile, confused and dishevelled old lady. Grandma is doing well now that she has us to care for her.  Sometimes she knows who we are and sometimes she doesn’t. It’s like she has a switch that goes on and off. I don’t feel sad about it anymore, instead I focus on the person she is now.

We go for walks together every day and she remembers that it is part of her routine.  Sometimes, she comes up to me, clutching her hat and my hat in hand asking to go for a walk. We don’t go very far and most of the time she thinks I’m just a nice lady but I do cherish my time with her.

There will be a time when we have to put her into a nursing home. Her condition will become worse to the point that she will need 24 hour care. For now, I focus on spending my time with her.