Brain atrophy

So, I just found out a friend of mine has brain atrophy. She’s been dealing with mental health issues for a while now, and apparently, the doctors are saying things are looking pretty grim. To be honest, she still seems to be functioning okay most of the time—she just kind of blanks out for a few seconds here and there. But man, it really hit me hard. It makes me wonder... does this mean she's actually dying? And is there even a tiny, microscopic chance of her getting better?

Jacob Myers85 said:So, I just found out a friend of mine has brain atrophy. She’s been dealing with mental health issues for a while now, and apparently, the doctors are saying things are looking pretty grim. To be honest, she still seems to be functioning okay most of the time—she just kind of blanks out for a few seconds here and there. But man, it really hit me hard. It makes me wonder... does this mean she's actually dying? And is there even a tiny, microscopic chance of her getting better?

Her brain cells are essentially dying off. That is a heavy, brutal diagnosis to carry😢. Unfortunately, it’s a progressive condition, meaning it moves forward relentlessly, though I know there are medications available that can help slow down the decline. My fear is that a "cure" to reverse the damage doesn't exist, which means a full recovery isn't on the table. It’s going to get harder as time goes on, and she’ll gradually lose the abilities she still holds onto today. Just be there for her and try to stay patient as she starts changing.
That is truly devastating. I'm assuming she's relatively young.

Yeah, she was only 20... man, my heart just breaks for her. I mean, you have to assume the meds basically wrecked her system, since they were constantly swapping her out on different prescriptions and all that mess. Just awful.
I was reading some stuff online about how people with Alzheimer's deal with this too—something about certain cells in the brain getting totally wiped out or whatever. Honestly, I don't know the science behind it, I'm no expert.

Jacob Myers85 said:Yeah, she was only 20... man, my heart just breaks for her. I mean, you have to assume the meds basically wrecked her system, since they were constantly swapping her out on different prescriptions and all that mess. Just awful.
I was reading some stuff online about how people with Alzheimer's deal with this too—something about certain cells in the brain getting totally wiped out or whatever. Honestly, I don't know the science behind it, I'm no expert.

Exactly. It’s a similar mechanism with Alzheimer's. Check your PM.

Jacob Myers85 said:Yeah, she was only 20... man, my heart just breaks for her. I mean, you have to assume the meds basically wrecked her system, since they were constantly swapping her out on different prescriptions and all that mess. Just awful.
I was reading some stuff online about how people with Alzheimer's deal with this too—something about certain cells in the brain getting totally wiped out or whatever. Honestly, I don't know the science behind it, I'm no expert.

Perhaps if we find a cure for Eisenhower, we can finally deal with that atrophy as well...

Angela Wright said:Her brain cells are essentially dying off. That is a heavy, brutal diagnosis to carry😢. Unfortunately, it’s a progressive condition, meaning it moves forward relentlessly, though I know there are medications available that can help slow down the decline. My fear is that a "cure" to reverse the damage doesn't exist, which means a full recovery isn't on the table. It’s going to get harder as time goes on, and she’ll gradually lose the abilities she still holds onto today. Just be there for her and try to stay patient as she starts changing.
That is truly devastating. I'm assuming she's relatively young.

Unfortunately, I got it wrong.🙄Some things are currently underway. Studies.But honestly, we're still just hovering right around zero.👎 I messed up my assumption because I conflated Alzheimer's with Parkinson's—which, unlike Alzheimer's, can actually be slowed down with medication. With Alzheimer's, you're basically just looking at drugs that might ease certain symptoms, but that’s really where the road ends. To make matters worse here, there doesn't even seem to be a clear understanding of what triggered this whole mess in the first place. Brain atrophy.
My apologies to anyone I might have given false hope to.😢

Thanks for everything, seriously... all this research and everything that might even slightly help makes a huge difference. I'll show it all to her parents so they can make the call.

About twenty years ago—right after my second kid was born—I started having these really bizarre episodes. I’d lose my sense of direction entirely, or my tongue and hand would just go numb, followed by these brutal, pounding headaches. My neurologist ended up sending me to the Mayo Clinic for a brain scan, and the results showed some localized atrophy. They actually asked if I'd ever taken a hard hit to the head.
Things eventually settled down, and thank God, it hasn't happened again since. It’s possible those cells that died off weren't even doing anything vital, or maybe the whole thing was just my body redlining from the sheer exhaustion of juggling a six-month-old and an eighteen-month-old under one roof.
I really hope things turn out okay for your friend. 🙂

thanks a ton, man. seriously glad to hear you're doing alright🙂

Just a small observation here—and please don't mistake this for any kind of endorsement of drug use, as I have no desire to catch the attention of a moderator—but there has been some recent research regarding the intersection of marijuana and Alzheimer's. http://www.webmd.com/alzheimers/news...low-alzheimers

While I am not entirely certain about the exact degree of correlation between Alzheimer's processes and brain atrophy, it certainly seems like a subject worth investigating, as it might actually offer some meaningful insights.