Losing Mom

Book excerpt: Author Cynthia Ryan offers a heartfelt glimpse into the experience of losing a parent to Alzheimer's disease. She shares the realities and heartbreak of her mother's experience, one that was both enhanced and complicated by their complex mother-daughter relationship and family dynamics. Shy and distant, but also independent, her mother didn't often find joy in the roles of wife and mother. The trials of a scarred childhood, marked by poverty and an alcoholic father, made true happiness elusive for her mother. On Christmas Eve of 2000, Cynthia started to see noticeable changes in her mother. A devoted grandmother, she had never forgotten to buy presents for one of her grandchildren-until that day. What's more, she spent the day pouting, because the family was celebrating Christmas one day early. Over the coming months, her behavior grew increasingly erratic and forgetful; she became agitated more and more easily. Cynthia finally took her mother to the doctor, where everyone's worst fears were confirmed: Alzheimer's. In this memoir, Cynthia shares their journey of understanding, forgiveness, blessings, healing, and renewed love. She celebrates her mother's life, even as it spiraled out of her control.