Early onset Alzheimer's: a Regina woman shares her journey

"There can be plateaus.Then you lose stuff."

Roxanne Varey is 53. She doesn't seem to have changed much since I last met her in January. At that time, she was some 18 months into a diagnosisof early onset Alzheimer's disease (younger onset as many
are now calling it).

They're little things, but as you lose them you'd be amazed how meaningful they are.- Roxanne Varey

She has changed though.

Her fine motor skills have deteriorated and she can no longer tie her shoelaces or unload the dishwasher.

"They're little things,but as you lose them you'd be amazed how meaningful they are."

Varey talked to Saskatoon Morning host Leisha Grebinski this morning.

The losses come with the awareness that it's only going to get worse.

Doctors have told her that her illness is terminal and she may have as little as ten years to live.
"It's not going to stop at shoelaces," she said.

Roxanne has also seen losses to her short-term memory.

She had a moment recently whenshe took a wrong turn while driving and suddenly found herself completely lost.
"It's frightening. It's scary."

Since then she doesn't roam too far from home."It shortened my leash."

I'm groping more for words.- Roxane Varey

Roxanne compensates for her memory loss by starting each day making a long list of things to do. She plays computer games to give her brain a work-out.

Roxanne's husband, Michael, has made changes in his life as well. He now monitors Roxanne's movements by GPSand, beginning in October, his boss has allowed him to work from home.

"It made more sense to me if we spend time together now than later, when I'm in Depends," said Roxanne.

Roxanne loves to laugh and enjoys conversation but lately "I'm groping more for words."She recently turned down a speaking engagement because she didn't think she could get throughan hour of talking.

Today, in this moment, the words and the laughs come easily. Tomorrow is an unknown. We'll check back in with Roxanne next year as we continue to follow her journey.