Couple battles stereotypes about Alzheimer's

EAST COUNTY — At 58, Robin McCormick doesn’t fit the stereotype of an Alzheimer’s patient. But one year ago, the East County resident was diagnosed with younger-onset Alzheimer’s, which refers to the disease when it strikes individuals younger than 65. She is the third generation in her family to have the progressive brain disorder that causes memory loss and changes in cognitive abilities.

Now, McCormick and her husband, Mike, are determined to break common stereotypes about Alzheimer’s to generate awareness about the disease and funding for a cure.

On Jan. 21, the Lakewood Ranch couple traveled to Tallahassee, alongside 50 other advocates who are members of the Alzheimer’s Association’s Florida Gulfcoast chapter. The McCormicks were the only East County residents to attend the two-day “Rally in Tally” event.

“It’s this dirty word — Alzheimer’s,” Robin McCormick said. “As a society, we don’t talk about it. We just don’t; people think it’s just ‘an old person’s disease.’”

Alzheimer’s isn’t a disease specific to the elderly as part of the aging process, Mike McCormick said.

Slowing down physically is part of growing old, not forgetting what you did last week, he added.

Members of the Gulfcoast branch have attended the statewide event the last four years.

“This event generates a lot of excitement with advocates because they get an opportunity to meet with legislators on the behalf of people who don’t have a voice and can’t go to Tallahassee to lobby,” said Natalie Kelly, of the Alzheimer’s Association’s Florida Gulfcoast Chapter. “They advocate on their behalf.”

After traveling five hours to the state’s capital, the Ranch couple met with five state senators to discuss the need for more funding to help find a cure for the brain-debilitating disease.

Robin McCormick shared her story of how she went from being an “Energizer Bunny” mother of two who took care of everything to being the one who required care. She saw the power of her words when she spoke to Sen. Lizbeth Benacquisto, of Fort Myers, who has a friend recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.

“She was crying, I was crying and we were just talking about things,” Robin McCormick said. “That’s what the trip was about. It was perfect.”

The McCormicks and other advocates are building a rapport with state leaders, said Sue Fox, Manatee County program specialist for Alzheimer’s Association’s Florida Gulfcoast chapter.

The McCormicks and the Alzheimer’s Association’s Florida groups hope to persuade state officials to increase funding by $2 million, for a total of $6 million annually.

The seemingly slow advancement in Alzheimer’s research in comparison to other diseases, such as cancer, prompted the McCormicks to attend the event.

“Nothing has changed since my dad had Alzheimer’s,” Robin McCormick said.

“I’m sitting here, on the same medications my dad was on and most likely the same ones my grandmother took. That’s a truth and a reality,” she said.

For Robin McCormick, lob bying officials isn’t solely about requesting more money to study the disease. It allows her to make a difference against the disease that often leaves her feeling helpless, she said.

“It’s hard to know that day to day, there’s nothing I can do,” Robin McCormick said. “But going on this trip made me feel like I was doing something. It gave me hope that we’ll be able to find a cure.”

Contact Amanda Sebastiano at [email protected].

Alzheimer’s resources 
Windsor Reflections at Lakewood Ranch, 8320 Natures Way, offers a variety of classes for individuals with Alzheimer’s and their families or caretakers:

Younger-Onset Support Group meets at 11 a.m. the second Tuesday of each month.

Navigating Life Changes Support Group meets at 1 p.m. Mondays. Call facilitator Sue Fox at 365-8883 or email [email protected].