I can’t share the full conversation, sorry. But I just took a function with the same purpose that used OpenSSL and asked Claude to rewrite it so it would work without relying on OpenSSL.
Professional advice and care are the best options but i think i can share some of our personal experience for what they are worth. I would say having a certain level of pragmatism is important without being insensitive with the person with this disease, for example one thing i wish we would have done earlier was to declare my father in law as "legally incapacitated", i am not sure what is the proper term in english but here in spain it means that they cannot legally bind themselves to anything without the consent of a tutor/guardian. This is a painful process because it takes time (judges, doctors, etc... must asses the case) and this acts as a constant reminder to the person with the disease of what is coming, making him/her feels useless. Another key aspect is being focused from the begining on what the healthcare system can provide for your relative as the disease progress, these bureucratic processes tend to be slow on my country, and since dementia progresses at different rates for each individual, it’s best to start looking into options early. Symptoms might advance rapidly in younger individuals.
Equally important is being sensitive and getting ready for what is to come, i don't think you can be optimistic so instead we focused on appreciating the time together, i started having more personal conversations with my father in law, we got closer and somehow that bond remains. We learned to be very patient because he went through a long period of aphasia, if he got stuck on certain phrases, we just gave him a bit of push completing the words he was missing. We also took long walks on nature. Being surrounded by a peaceful environment is important. As the disease advanced, he started to feel very confused, he couldn't recognize us sometimes and that made him angry, there was usually small hints before the outburst triggered, again being patient and trying to calm him down was important. Because he was relative young he was physically strong what was challenging but it is manageable, i think he needed to feel safe so focusing on that was a good strategy. Now he is not longer able to communicate, occasionally he says a few words and sometimes it can be even funny, it is fascinating how the brain still responds to humor even with dementia. When I sense he is nervous, I gently touch his back, and I can feel how much it reassures him. Support groups to share these experiences are important, take all the help you can get. When the disease reaches its final stages, seek the help of professionals. Their support can help the family maintain a sense of normalcy and be functional.
By the way, I just realized that I said it’s hard to be optimistic, but one thing I can truly say is that I value life so much more now. Every day that I wake up and feel present is a gift.
It is hard to describe how painful was to read about the overwhelming evidence of study manipulation by Masliah and others a few months ago. My father-in-law was diagnosed with this terrible disease in his late fifties, but before that he went through several misdiagnoses, including depression. He lost his job and i am now convinced that it was because he was on early stage of the disease, which affected his memory and ability to communicate. I later learned about this being something under study because apparently is a pattern: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/31/business/economy/alzheime... This triggered all kind of troubles as you might imagine.
After that, he went through a violent period and within a few months he could no longer speak or eat on his own. He now wears diapers and we had to hire a professional caregiver to help with his daily routines. Our family impact has been dramatic, we are not a large family so we had to spend a significant amount of resources to help his wife who is his main care giver. We have since received some assistance from the public healthcare system, but it took time, and the support did not keep pace with the rapid progression of his symptoms.
I have seen relatives pass away from other causes but this is by far one of the cruelest ways to die. After a few years of dealing with this disease, i cannot fathom any justification - good or bad - for the massive deception orchestrated, apparently for the sake of Masliag and others' careers. I hope they are held accountable and brought to trial soon for the damage they have caused to society and science.
I have just finished “World of yesterday” by Stefan Zweig, probably one of the best books I have ever read, it gives you a picture how the world was at the beginning of 20th century and how despite of cultural and technological advances of the world, Europe turned to madness.
Now i am starting “Infinite Jest” by David Foster Wallace.
I can confirm this. I am from Spain and I have lived in a few cities all around the country and the lack of soundproofing in every building is a common thing, regardless of town or area, it seems like all buildings from 1970 were built ignoring any sound proof.
Sometimes I think we are heading towards a similar situation here in Spain but for millennials. House built per year are at its lowest point and most of the houses are owned by baby boomers. If you want to buy a house you are competing against not only regular buyers but also real estate investment companies which are almost impossible to compete with, only way is to get mortgages for more years than you will be able to work, so people without good retirement plans will not be able to pay such mortgages