Depends on the severity of the mental deficiency and the individual since no two patients are alike. I have found in many cases the brain is not functioning in that capacity to even contemplate suicide... in many cases their brain does not have enough clarity to pull off a suicide attempt...from what i have seen anyway.

@A myALZteam Member. I didn’t know it was that high for caregivers. I did read that caregivers have a 60% chance of dying early compared to the non caregiver population. Shows how important it is to take care of ourselves!

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According to JAMA (journal on the American Medical Association). Patients with Alzheimer’s are more likely to commit suicide if they are over 65, in the first 3 months after diagnosis and have preexisting mental issues (such as depression). This makes sense to me. Adjustments in the time after the initial diagnosis are difficult. If there is a tendency toward depression, anxiety etc that would make it worse. I would think that the amount of support from family, friends and spirituality would make a difference also. As the disease progresses, they lose the ability to reason that if I want this, I need to follow these steps.

Richard10: In the case of my friend who tried to commit suicide last year, it was unexpected. She was interactive with her church, with me, with her spouse...but she had always suffered from depression. My husband has only been depressed maybe several times a year. But I believe that in my friend's case, as he memory started worsening...she did NOT want to be a 'burden' to anyone (especially NOT her husband) and I believe that this might have been the catalyst. So simply being vigilant with your loved one suffering from the disease AND if depression is observed, ask for anti-depressant meds. I am thinking that's the only way to handle it.

@A myALZteam Member. Tell him the Dr thinks this is the best “for the time being” or “until he gets a little stronger”. Even though you know it is permanent and he won’t be getting stronger, you can still let him have his hope.

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