Australian mother suffers Alzheimer’s at 31, can’t remember baby

April 12, 2010 by Shawn Douglas  
Filed under: News

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Australian mother Rebecca Doig is unable to remember her baby due to rapid-onset Alzheimer’s at the age of 31.

For Rebecca Doig it started with constantly misplacing her handbag. Now she can’t remember that she’s a mother.

Doig was diagnosed with a rare form of rapid-onset Alzheimer’s disease nine months ago after experiencing increasing difficulty in remembering anything. While performing scans to diagnose the memory loss, doctors also found out last August that Doig was pregnant.

The deterioration of Doig’s state worsened as the disease ate away at the memory and emotional centers of her brain. Her husband, Scott, has been forced to bear the burden of supporting the family financially and care for his wife.

“She’s like an 80-year-old going on five years old,” he said of his wife’s state.

In what should have been a joyous occasion to all, Rebecca Doig gave birth to her baby daughter Emily Rebecca by Caesarean section at Hornsby Hospital on Tuesday, April 6. Baby Emily, who weighed in at 6 pounds, 3 ounces, is said to not carry the same defective PSEN1 gene that caused her mother’s Alzheimer’s, a relief to father Scott Doig.

However within a few days, Rebecca Doig couldn’t remember having given birth to a daughter, showing no emotional attachment at all.

“She went from being an independent, outgoing and bright young woman to someone who doesn’t recognise her own newborn daughter,” Scott Doig told the Telegraph.

Doig is struggling to deal with his wife’s condition but tries to remain optimistic. “The road ahead is going to be extremely difficult — there’s no two ways about it,” he told the Sydney Sunday Telegraph. “We take every day as it comes because there is not a lot that we can do about it.”

“If you sit there and start thinking about things, you will just get depressed. I can’t do that because I’ve got a wife and now a little girl to look after.”

Struggling to make his mortgage payment, Scott Doig has also faced additional hurdles. He has been denied a disability pension to help him care for his wife and baby. Noticing these difficulties, his friends at the Hornsby Council have set up a benefit event to raise money for the family.

To learn more about the benefit event and the Rebecca Doig Benefit Trust Fund, visit http://www.doigfundraiser.com.au/.

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