Note: This published Monday Jan. 6 on AL.com. Here’s the top of the story and a link to the full length version:
This is an opinion column by Mike Oliver who writes about living with Lewy body dementia.
Come on in.
Welcome.
Welcome to my brain.
The brain is the big boss. This is where it begins — and possibly ends.
I have a brain. (Thank God I was in the right line for that).
But I am not my brain.
Sure, my brain is the Bill Gates of my operation on Earth. But Gates has many thousands who make up Microsoft. Of course it’s all directed and put in play by Gates. When my stomach hurts my brain tells me. But my stomach almost simultaneously mobilizes the forces to find whatever distresses it and help with a fix. The brain keeps the light on while the body parts do their job.
The brain is me but not me only. It’s the conductor of a million symphonies as my body comes together in symbiotic synchronicity. Harmony.
But not always, and certainly not forever. My brain is broken now.
It’s leaking Lewy bodies.
And depending on the source, one lives an average of 4 to 9 years after diagnosis. I was diagnosed, first with Parkinson’s and later Lewy body dementia in 2016. In an internal battle, proteins are killing my brain cells by the 10′s of millions. Near the end, autonomic will not be automatic.
So, welcome to my brain. Let’s have a little fun. (That’s my new motto).