Lauren interviews George Visger - S2E07
Unlocking the Doors of Dementia with LAUREN
English - May 17, 2020 20:00 - 30 minutes - 21.2 MB - ★★★★ - 7 ratingsMental Health Health & Fitness dementia alzheimer's caregiving care management parkinson's lewy body vascular dementia Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
In this episode, Lauren interviews George Visger, who played in the National Football League with the San Francisco 49ers in 1980 and 1981. George's story intersects with our conversation about memory impairment, beginning when he sustained a concussion in a game against the Cowboys in 1980. He was administered numerous smelling salts during that game and never missed a play or practice. In the following 1981 Super Bowl season, George developed hydrocephalus and underwent 3 emergency ventriculoperitoneal, or VP shunt brain surgeries in 8 months. A VP shunt is a medical device that relieves pressure on the brain caused by fluid accumulation. He was given last rites and the massive hospital bills at the age of 23.
George talks about his holistic approach to getting off dementia medications, his extensive use of notebooks to document his interactions with people to make up for his short term memory loss, and other relevant topics. Not to be missed!