Have you ever watched a TV show with a medical story line, and you suspect the information is inaccurate? I work for The National Marrow Donor Program®/Be the Match®. Occasionally I have watched a show with a storyline about a blood or marrow transplant, and I can clearly see inaccuracies.
I just finished watching all six seasons of the TV Show “This Is Us” on Hulu. I enjoyed the entire series and found it worthy of the many awards it won.
In the show, the storyline follows the family as they deal with an Alzheimer’s disease diagnosis of one of the main cast members. I found the family emotions and reactions to be representative of what a family might experience when someone is diagnosed with dementia. (Note “dementia” is the umbrella term, Alzheimer’s Disease is the most common form of dementia.) I was pleased to learn a neurologist, Dr. Michael S. Rafi of the University of Southern California Alzheimer’s Therapeutic Research Center, consulted on the show.
Without spoiling the storyline for those who have not watched it, here are some of the experiences of the family members after the initial diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment, and the subsequent diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease.
- Denial – Are you certain it is the correct diagnosis? Everyone gets a little forgetful! Surely there is something we can do to change the outcome. Denial has a strong pull.
- Isolation – part of the storyline takes place during the pandemic. Obviously, the writers did not anticipate writing the COVID-19 shutdown into the story in 2020-2021, however, they wove it into the lives of the characters in a realistic manner. You could see how difficult a time it was for all of them, and especially for the senior family members separated from the others and dealing with cognitive issues that come with dementia.
- Fear, conflict, and acceptance – The character diagnosed with the disease demonstrated all these emotions one would expect.
- Family conflict – when the cast member with dementia reached a level of acceptance, she called a family meeting, and let the other family members know whom she wanted to take charge as the disease progressed. This resulted in questions and disagreement among the family members: Why wasn’t I chosen to be the primary caregiver? How will we continue to make decisions as a family? Did the family find ways to effectively resolve their conflicts? (You’ll have to watch and see!)
- Caregiver strain – The storyline shows how difficult it is to care for a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease, and how it can cause physical and emotional trauma on the primary caregiver. Often caregivers, especially older ones, have their own medical issues, and providing constant care for a loved one exasperates their own problems.
- Letting go and saying goodbye – I was crying at the final scenes of the story. It was so real, reminding me of saying goodbye to my dad, over and over again.
I so appreciate the accuracy of the writers and editors, and I hope many people have been and will be educated about how Alzheimer’s disease can affect a family. I also love that as a result of the part she played in the show, the main actress started an organization called “Be Brain Powerful” to encourage people to make healthy brain choices.
Have you noticed unusual behavior in yourself or a loved one that might suggest a cognitive decline? Is there a recent dementia diagnosis? Wondering about next steps? To connect with resources and to learn three important steps to take now visit Nancy’s website.