Denial

(Chapter 2 Acceptance and Denial & Chapter 26 MCI Tool Box in my book)

I think that it is very common for someone who was just diagnosed with a memory impairment to be in denial. It is okay if that happens but just don't stay in denial for a long time. It takes time to accept that life as you once knew it is changing. Eventually you need to come to grips with the diagnosis. Since you can't change the way that your brain is functioning, you need to find ways of dealing with the symptoms. I was diagnosed in 2005 so I have had fifteen years to get comfortable with this diagnosis. Luckily it didn't take me all those years in order to accept the diagnosis.

I think that the key to living your life your diagnosis is to not stay in denial for too long. Figure out what challenges you have and problem solve on how to cope with the changes that are happening due to the memory impairment. There is still lots of life to live after a diagnosis and I am proof of that. In 2005 at age forty-seven I was diagnosed with Early Onset Alzheimer's Disease (EOAD). A few months later, a second neurologist changed my diagnosis to MCI. Fourteen years later and my diagnosis is still mild cognitive impairment (MCI).