Six years ago, Veronica Shanklin showed up at her childhood home in DeSoto, Texas, expecting a typical visit. Shanklin’s grandmother, who’d been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease at age 82, had moved in with Shanklin’s mom a few years earlier. Shanklin, a marketing executive in Chicago, wanted to spend some time with them and was also eager to help with caretaking for a few days; she was sure her mom, then 66, could use a break.
Yet mere minutes after walking in the door, Shanklin’s heart sank. Both her grandmother and mother had lost weight. The usually tidy home was a mess, with dirty laundry piling up and overdue bills scattered across a bed.
“My mom was the manager of the credit union at her church,” Shanklin says. “If she couldn’t pay her own bills or keep up with cooking and cleaning, I knew something was wrong.” Then Shanklin noticed that her mother kept forgetting what day it was. She’d seen her grandmother—and grandfather, who also had Alzheimer’s—deal with similar issues. Worried, Shanklin took her mom to the doctor. The diagnosis confirmed her fear: Alzheimer’s disease. read more
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The excerpt above is from the July/August 2020 edition of O Magazine. I am always honored when I have the opportunity to share my story and shed light and bring awareness to a cause that I am so passionate about. I'm so proud that Dementia Care Warriors was mentioned in the article!!! I'm excited about the work that we are doing and can't wait to see what our future holds.