Oct 16, 2014 3 min read

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A caregiver for an Alzheimer’s patient touched my heart with her recent letter to the newspaper.

Anita Paris writes, “I went to a support group today, one of many I have attended over the last year-and-a-half since I became a full-time caregiver for my mother-in-law who has Alzheimer’s. These support groups are so valuable to me. You begin to look at these people as your friends and family. They are the ones who completely understand what you are going through. They offer advice, not criticism. They will always try to help in any way that they can, even if it is just a hug. Not to discount my own friends and family, but they are busy with their own lives. But I am grateful for the occasional text or email to check up on me to see how I am doing.”

She mentioned country music legend Glen Campbell, who has been very public about his own battle with Alzheimer’s and is entering the final stages of the disease. Campbell no longer performs, but recently released a new single recorded in 2013, “I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” which is a rumination about the life that Alzheimer’s has stolen from him.

“I cried and cried watching this video,” Anita writes. “It is such a touching song. He sings, ‘You are the last person that I’ll love.'

She used Campbell’s lyrics to reassure caregivers.

“If being a caregiver gets you down or frustrated, and there will be days that it will, just remember that you, as a caregiver, will be the last person that the Alzheimer’s patient will love. They will forget your name; they will forget the names of their family and friends, as well as forget their faces, especially if they don’t see them often. But the caregiver’s face is the last face they will forget. You are their security blanket and safety net.

“Being a caregiver is sometimes a thankless and frustrating job, but the rewards outweigh the negatives.

“One day, when their journey with Alzheimer’s is over, you will go to sleep at night knowing that you made their time on Earth as fulfilling as possible, and that you were the last face they forgot, and they loved you.”

Thank you, Anita. We couldn’t have said it better.