Dear Carol: My husband went for a physical and was surprised by a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease. He’s in denial and won’t see a specialist for confirmation. So far, he can still function almost normally except for short-term memory loss and occasional confusion. His primary care doctor prescribed Aricept and Namenda, for now, but he did suggest we get a second opinion. What can I do to help my husband? Gale

Dear Gale: Your husband’s denial isn’t unusual. He likely doesn’t want the diagnosis confirmed, so you may want to suggest a specialist by saying that the primary doctor could be wrong, which does happen. There are many types of dementia and a specialist is more likely to be able determine what specific type of dementia is present.

Read more about helping someone who is in denial about Alzheimer's:

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