Dear Carol: My dad has been caring for my mother for years, filling in the blanks in her memory, making excuses for her sometimes bizarre behavior, and just plain living in denial. I’ve talked to them both repeatedly about getting Mom to a doctor to see if there is help, to no avail. Dad can’t keep this up. I see his health failing from worry and from the hard work of taking care of her. Yet, he won’t give in unless she does. What do I do? Stanley

Dear Stanley: Most of us have a tendency to deny as much of the aging process as we can. It’s just no fun to feel ourselves “slipping,” in some area. Yet, it’s a fact that early detection of a disease is nearly always better than letting symptoms go on without diagnosis and treatment, when possible. 

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