Upon hearing the bad news that I had Lewy body dementia, I came upon this idea to count down my beloved record collection to raise awareness of the disease.1 There’s no cure. I’m 61, hoping to make it a few more years at least. 

I have 678 vinyl record albums. (Remember those?) I’m reviewing them one by one on my blog. 

Thousands followed my record countdown until it temporarily went silent last year. I went through a hallucinatory stage where I became immersed in another world. I communicated with other beings and talked to people no one else could see. Some wondered if I had reneged on my promise to finish all 678 reviews before I die. 

I haven’t and I won’t. I have renewed life. A reorganization of my medications has fixed the hallucinations for now.2 

I think the typing of these blog posts is stimulating my brain in a way that is slowing the progression of my disease. Looking for a record that I just saw yesterday and now can’t find, even though I know it was there and it makes me want to scream, is certainly raising my blood pressure, which is also good!3 

 

Follow Mike Oliver’s journey and read his album reviews at www.myvinylcountdown.com. 

Selfie of Mike Oliver

Photo: Courtesy of Mike Oliver

Notes

  1. Lewy body dementia (LBD) affects areas of the brain that control behavior, movement and mental ability.
  2. Oliver is being treated by Cleveland Clinic psychiatrist Kasia Rothenberg, MD, PhD. 
  3. A common symptom of LBD is low blood pressure, which can cause dizziness and fainting.