Why My Purse Was in the Freezer

I found my purse in the freezer this week. After appropriate jokes about new meaning for the term “cold cash,” I considered what this might really indicate. The thought was chilling.

As a Senior Move Manager, I have taken courses on how memory changes over time, so I know that short term memory loss increases as we age, and brain processing speed slows down. This part of aging is referred to as normal age-related memory loss. I know that some people experience more than normal age-related memory loss, and this is referred to as mild cognitive impairment, or MCI. Both people with normal age-related memory loss and people with MCI can live independent, meaningful lives. I also know that 5 million people in the US, and 50% of people above 85, have some degree of dementia. Does finding my purse in the freezer mean that I will become one of them?

Dementia is more than memory loss alone. It is also characterized by problems with judgment, language, abstract thinking, and it interferes with daily and social functioning. So now I am doing what many people above a certain age do when they forget something or notice cognitive changes. I am asking myself if finding my purse in the freezer is a sign of something serious.