When my husband, Dr. Alan Schooley, was diagnosed with Young Onset Alzheimer’s at age 51, the Denver medical team recommended the MIND Diet, intense exercise and meditation. I worked the MIND Diet into our life, and Alan set out to run. We both embraced meditation.
Driving and biking were prohibited because of his Posterior Cortical Atrophy (PCA), the visual-spatial form of dementia. Running became Alan’s freedom. Our daughter hand-lettered a sign pinned to his running vest: “Alzheimer’s can’t keep me from running.”
Alan ran with the Durango Running Club in the early mornings, and when that was more difficult, he pounded the Animas River Trail, logging countless hours of long-distance running. He enjoyed talking with people (and dogs), even when aphasia/apraxia affected his speech. His proudest achievement was crossing the finish line at a half marathon in just over two hours in summer 2023.
During my library office hours for the Durango Dementia Coalition a few months ago, a gentleman sat down to chat. When I spoke about Alan, he replied that he met him on the river trail. It was the first time I’d encountered someone who met Alan while running. It was like Alan was speaking to me, briefly, in that moment.
Alan also worked with a personal trainer to help with coordination and weight training, especially as the disease started to impact his balance and left side strength. Two hours with Aaron Coats at Illete Fitness was the highlight of Alan’s week. His later PCA diagnosis afforded Alan physical therapy, which helped to slow down the effects on his nervous system, but more important provided vital social interaction with physical therapist Ben Fordahl, who gave him exercises to work on rather than just giving up.
For as long as possible, we traveled and hiked. COVID-19 squelched international travel, but we put loads of miles on our Subaru exploring the Southwest. As the disease progressed, we accommodated. Skiing gave way to snowshoeing; camping to hotels; running alone to running partners; and hiking to walking the Big Al accessibility trail in Mancos.
Most mornings, Alan listened to guided meditations on his phone while sipping coffee on our tree-enveloped deck. He sometimes watched the turkey vultures’ journey from Fassbinder to Overend Park. After Alan passed away at Hospice House, when driving out of the parking lot, I saw a large, shadowy, birdlike mass in a tree in my right field of vision, but it just seemed to disappear. I’ve always thought it was Alan taking flight.
Kimberly Younce Schooley has been an attorney, teacher and full-time caregiver for her husband, who recently passed away from Young Onset Alzheimer’s and Posterior Cortical Atrophy. She serves as the vice president of the Durango Dementia Coalition.
