Dear Alzheimer’s disease,
I hate you. I’ve always been taught not to hate things because it is so powerful, but you are the lone thing I truly despise. You’re ugly, relentless and my biggest fear. You’re welcomed by no one and 44 million people have been affected by you worldwide. You’ve damaged over 5.4 million American families. You are no friend of mine or anyone for that matter.
You ruin families. You cause so much pain, that it never truly goes away, even if a family member dies. Once someone has a loved one affected by you, their life is never the same. The pain you inflict on the families of the victims is so monstrous, nothing compares. Their loved one was not only stripped away by death but in such a gruesome manner. They watched their loved one forget simple tasks, to family member names and faces. But worst of all, it gets to the point where they forget how to function or even talk. The family sees the person they adore, but it’s not really them. It’s a stranger.
You stripped me of a loving family member. You stole the rock of my family. You forced me to watch the most painful and disgusting thing I’ve ever witnessed. For this, I will never forgive you.
Here’s the thing, though— the one thing that keeps me hopeful. One day, I envision a world without you in it. I know there will be a cure for you one day, whether it is within my lifetime or not. The pain you’ve inflicted in people’s lives is something they may never truly get over and I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy. I fear you. I am terrified you will attack me and even worse, others in my family. But I remain hopeful. One day you will be gone and no one will be affected by you and all of your terrible qualities. One day you will be conquered.
For this, I pray every day.
