Page 79 - Senior Link Magazine Spring 2019- Online Magazine

HONORING SENIORS
Marilyn’s Road to the Isle

by Amy McAlpin

residents feel not only appreciated but celebrated.” The Isle
at Raider Ranch Memory Care offers an array of engaging
The road trip to watch the State Basketball activities, plus state-of-the-art programs like Dining with
Championship had started like every other trip Larry Dignity, an exciting new approach to dining that enhances the
and Marilyn Christian had made before, but, this time, nutritional health of residents with Dementia and Alzheimer’s
Marilyn ended the trip in the emergency room. It Disease and Never2Late, an interactive program that keeps
began the first night in the hotel in Austin. Larry woke residents engaged with activities designed to stimulate the
up to the sound of knocking, and when he felt for his brain.
wife of 52 years, he found she wasn’t in bed. He heard
the knocking again and found Marilyn in the hotel During Marilyn’s four years at the Isle at Raider Ranch, she
room’s bathroom trying to get out. It alarmed Larry and her entire family have felt loved and supported. When
because his wife claimed she couldn’t find her way. asked what words of advice Larry offers to people affected by
Larry, thinking she may have had a stroke, drove her dementia in any form, he said, “Meet your loved one where
back to Lubbock and straight to the ER. they are cognitively, support them during their entire journey
and, when the time comes, take them to the Isle at Raider
The answers were few and far between. Marilyn had Ranch for the very best care available.”
been experiencing a “loss of words” for months, but
doctors had attributed that to stress. In the emergency * Lewy Body Dementia Association Website: lbda.org
room, doctors found a quarter-sized brain bleed but
couldn’t determine what had caused it. After many Amy McAlpin is the Sales Counselor at Isle at Raider Ranch.
tests, including a nuclear medicine scan, where a For more information on Assisted Living and/or Memory
small amount of radioactive material is injected and Care, call her at 806.368.6565
traced to produce images of the brain, the shattering
diagnosis of Lewy Body Disease was given.

Lewy Body Disease is one of the most common forms
of dementia affecting over 1.4 million Americans, but
it’s one of the most unknown. LBD happens when Assisted Living & Memory Care
abnormal structures, called Lewy Bodies, build up in
areas of the brain. It can be hard to diagnose because
diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s have similar
symptoms. However, LBD has some unique cognitive
symptoms, like visuospatial perception deficits and a Luxury Accommodation
slower speed of thinking. *
Meets Excellent Care
Larry mentally put a check-mark by all the symptoms.
Marilyn, once a super-sharp, outgoing and vivacious
former nurse who had considered going to med • Dining With Dignity SuzyQ Method
school, often forgot simple words and phrases and • It’s Never Too Late (IN2L) technology
had difficulty navigating new computer programs,
a task she would have easily tackled before. As • Horticulture Therapy through
Marilyn’s symptoms worsened, Larry searched ElderGrow
for help and found the Isle at Raider Ranch, one of
Lubbock’s premiere Assisted Living and Memory
Care Community.
Recalling the sheer devastation of the diagnosis, Larry
compares it to the incredible comfort and relief he
received from the staff at Isle at Raider Ranch when
Marilyn became a resident. “The entire staff worked
together to make sure Marilyn was involved and (806) 368-6565
happy. They made both Marilyn and I, our two sons
and their families, part of the family there, and I will www.RaiderRanch.com
forever be grateful.” Melinda Gintzer, the Program 6806 43rd St. | Lubbock, TX 79407
Director of the Memory Care Community at the Isle
at Raider Ranch, is dedicated to meeting the residents AL #103812
where they are cognitively. “I want to make all our

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