Louisville, Ky. • When geropsychologist Benjamin Mast evaluates dementia clients at his University of Louisville clinic, there’s a question some people of faith ask him:
It’s a query that reflects the struggles of people facing diseases like Alzheimer’s.
The earliest stages of Alzheimer’s involve the buildup of protein fragments, or plaques, on some brain cells and the growth of twisted fibers, or tangles, within those cells. That process, Mast said in an interview, “damages a particular aspect of the memory system more significantly than others.”
In his book, “Second Forgetting: Remembering the Power of the Gospel During Alzheimer’s Disease,” Mast describes a man who may not always remember his grown children’s names but “quickly joins in” when someone reads one of his favorite Psalms.