early onset
- Thread starter jacie 2
- Start date
Hello jacie
I`m really sorry you have to face dementia at such a young age for your husband. I`m afraid being advised to give up driving is one of the biggest let downs people with dementia experience.
Saying that there are those with dementia who still drive and are monitored by the DVLA so if your husband feels really strongly he is safe, perhaps he might contact them and fight his own corner.
I`m a non driver but even so can sympathise with the loss of independence having to give driving entails.
I do hope you find Talking Point helpful and supportive.
I`m really sorry you have to face dementia at such a young age for your husband. I`m afraid being advised to give up driving is one of the biggest let downs people with dementia experience.
Saying that there are those with dementia who still drive and are monitored by the DVLA so if your husband feels really strongly he is safe, perhaps he might contact them and fight his own corner.
I`m a non driver but even so can sympathise with the loss of independence having to give driving entails.
I do hope you find Talking Point helpful and supportive.
Hi Jacey and welcome to the forum.
Your husband can take an assessment and could keep his licence. My husband took a yearly test and he was allowed to drive for a further 4 years. There are drivers on here who are still driving many years after diagnosis. Everyone is different nothing is set in stone.
Look forward to reading your posts and please make use of all the experience and support that is willingly given on here,
Jay
Your husband can take an assessment and could keep his licence. My husband took a yearly test and he was allowed to drive for a further 4 years. There are drivers on here who are still driving many years after diagnosis. Everyone is different nothing is set in stone.
Look forward to reading your posts and please make use of all the experience and support that is willingly given on here,
Jay
Welcome to a community of friends jacie. 54 is very young. 
My OH and I are 58 and still hoping for an active retirement in a few years time. For you the plans for your middle years will change and the hope of active later years, 70's upwards, are doubtful for your husband. How cruel life can be.
The diagnosis of dementia is not the end, it is the beginning of a change of plans. I hope that your husband can continue to enjoy life for many years to come with support. At the moment the diagnosis must seem overwhelming, but you will adjust. I am always heartened to read in the Alzheimer's Society magazine of people with dementia seizing their active years with gusto and finding positive things to do. This can sometimes bring greater fulfilment than another 10 years of same-old same-old employment.
While I am the first person to say that if someone is unsafe to drive they should stop, there are many people with dementia who are safe to drive for quite a long time. Do you feel he is unsafe? If not, then although he should inform DVLA of his diagnosis, he may be allowed to continue, with a review date. There are driver assessment centres around the country that can offer a very thorough assessment of his physical driving skills, and visual and cognitive processing abilities.
My OH and I are 58 and still hoping for an active retirement in a few years time. For you the plans for your middle years will change and the hope of active later years, 70's upwards, are doubtful for your husband. How cruel life can be.The diagnosis of dementia is not the end, it is the beginning of a change of plans. I hope that your husband can continue to enjoy life for many years to come with support. At the moment the diagnosis must seem overwhelming, but you will adjust. I am always heartened to read in the Alzheimer's Society magazine of people with dementia seizing their active years with gusto and finding positive things to do. This can sometimes bring greater fulfilment than another 10 years of same-old same-old employment.
While I am the first person to say that if someone is unsafe to drive they should stop, there are many people with dementia who are safe to drive for quite a long time. Do you feel he is unsafe? If not, then although he should inform DVLA of his diagnosis, he may be allowed to continue, with a review date. There are driver assessment centres around the country that can offer a very thorough assessment of his physical driving skills, and visual and cognitive processing abilities.
Hello jacie, I'm sorry to learn of your husband's diagnosis. My husband was diagnosed at 48 and had to give up both his car and motorbike, the latter was his pride and joy. It was a difficult period for us but as he was no longer safe on the road driving had to stop. An immobiliser was hidden on our car as a safety precaution at the request of my husband's consultant. I hope your husband is able to continue safely driving if he has an assessment xxx
My dad had to give up driving before he was officially diagnosed, however I have also met someone who stopped driving after 8 years so it is different for everyone
Hi Jacie
I have every sympathy for your husband. I was diagnosed recently at 51.
I wasn't told not to drive, but to notify DVLA.
It takes at least 6 weeks for them to look at the questionaire and request any reports.
At the moment I am in limbo not knowing if I should drive or not.
I'm doing short journeys when I absolutely have too.
Hope your husband comes to terms with it soon
John
I have every sympathy for your husband. I was diagnosed recently at 51.
I wasn't told not to drive, but to notify DVLA.
It takes at least 6 weeks for them to look at the questionaire and request any reports.
At the moment I am in limbo not knowing if I should drive or not.
I'm doing short journeys when I absolutely have too.
Hope your husband comes to terms with it soon
John
hi can you tell me how your husband was diagnosed and what his signs and symptoms were for you to be concerned ,i am 48 and i had to give up driving as my mind wanders and goes blank and i forgot where i was going ,this was my choice as i did not feel safe and i nearly had a head on with my wife and kids in the car ,i have no idea what happened ,i loose time and do stupid things ,i paid the phone bill 3 times in the same week !i can not remember doing it ,i put items in the wrong place coffee in the freezer ,milk in the microwave ,burn dinners ,leave bath running till it overflows etc.i can not get my gp to listen to me she says im to young to have dementia ,my wife was a nurse and i was a medical technician we both know somethings wrong but no ones listening ,sorry to go on ..........gary
My hubby was told in January not to drive because of poor memory test result, doctor said to inform dvla which we didn't do at the time, consultant at memory clinic agreed that he should not drive but asked for assessment to be made. When I told him we hadn't informed dvla yet but he has not driven since January he said that was ok. Appointment still not through yet, although he has had correspondence to say that it could take 16 weeks. I don't have any doubt about his driving ability he can direct you to anywhere, and I hate driving so hoping he passes his test. He is 69 and has been driving since he was 17.
Hi Gazzer
I was diagnosed at 51. The whole process took over two years.
First I went to the GP with memory/ concentration problems. He sent me to a neurologist who thought there was nothing wrong but ordered a CT scan and neuropyschological tests. The scan showed that I had had a stroke, although I did not know. The nuero tests showed that my brain was working at a level low for my age age and education level.
I had prostate surgery in September last year, and had a TIA as I came out of the anaesthetic. Following that I spent some time on a stroke ward, where they found real memory problems and asked the GP to refer me to a memory clinic. Both the stroke specialist and the memory specialist pointed out that they deal with older people.
The neuro tests were repeated and the problem was taken seriously when they found that I had a lot of decline in mental function over a 12 month period.
This was followed up with an AMPS test which showed that I am not doing well with tasks of daily living.
So long as you feel up to being treated as an elderly person, I think you could insist your GP refer you for memory testing. Have they done a mini test in the surgery?
Good luck with this
John
In
I was diagnosed at 51. The whole process took over two years.
First I went to the GP with memory/ concentration problems. He sent me to a neurologist who thought there was nothing wrong but ordered a CT scan and neuropyschological tests. The scan showed that I had had a stroke, although I did not know. The nuero tests showed that my brain was working at a level low for my age age and education level.
I had prostate surgery in September last year, and had a TIA as I came out of the anaesthetic. Following that I spent some time on a stroke ward, where they found real memory problems and asked the GP to refer me to a memory clinic. Both the stroke specialist and the memory specialist pointed out that they deal with older people.
The neuro tests were repeated and the problem was taken seriously when they found that I had a lot of decline in mental function over a 12 month period.
This was followed up with an AMPS test which showed that I am not doing well with tasks of daily living.
So long as you feel up to being treated as an elderly person, I think you could insist your GP refer you for memory testing. Have they done a mini test in the surgery?
Good luck with this
John
In
