Woman diagnosed with Alzheimer’s at 22 says she’s just grateful she can still read
Amanda Rushing is beginning to lose her speech and mobility - but says it is a relief that she can still indulge her favorite hobby, reading
A woman who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s aged just 22 says she is grateful that she can still indulge in her favorite hobby – reading.
Amanda Rushing, who is now 42, made the humbling revelation after sharing an update on her early-onset dementia, which has already claimed the lives of four close relatives when they were in their 30s.
Amanda, from Oklahoma City in Oklahoma, said: ‘I’m hanging in there. I’m doing pretty well, pretty well, pretty most. For the most part, I’m doing pretty good. I can still do a lot of stuff on my own, you know, take a shower, clean my, clean my room when I can. I don’t really clean my room a lot.’
Amanda was diagnosed with dementia in 2000, when she was far younger than the average diagnosis age of 80. She was also much younger than the 60-65 age bracket at which an dementia sufferer is deemed to have early onset Alzheimer’s.
In 2018, Amanda’s jaw began to swing uncontrollably from side to side, although that debilitating symptom has since passed. But the upbeat churchgoer’s speech has now begun to grow slurred, with her mother and carer Anna, who does not have Alzheimer’s also noticing a decline in Amanda’s memory.
Anna told KFOR: ‘She’s slurring her words a little more now. Her memory has gotten a lot worse too. She still remembers a lot of things, especially from the far back, but recent things are hard for her to remember.’
Amanda, who now uses a cane to help her walk, added: ‘Walking a little slower these days, but I’m still walking, just hanging in there. My balance has been a little off.’
Early-onset Alzheimer’s has already ravaged Amanda’s family, with her dad dying at 47, her uncle at 42 and her aunt killed by the disease aged just 43. There is no way of curing or slowing the disease, although Amanda is participating in research she hopes will yield future treatments.
She also remembers the exact ages of her loved-ones who succumbed to the disease prematurely, and is determined to try and outlive them.
Speaking with tears streaming down her face, Amanda said: ‘My aunt and uncle passed away at 42 and 43.
‘My dad lasted the longest at 47, but still it’s just too young to go. I just want to see them go longer.’
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