Life isn’t always fair. Nor is it predictable. Just ask Joanna Fix of Colorado Springs.
Thirteen years ago, at age 41, Joanna was a rising academic star. She earned three college degrees. She was the chair of criminal justice and management at a major university...a specialist in organizational psychology who consulted with law enforcement.
By the time she turned 49, Joanna had been out of work for six years. She could no longer drive. The task of loading her dishwasher left her totally flummoxed.
Today, at age 54, Joanna is the newly-crowned Mrs. Colorado Springs. She’s still living with this incurable disease, but it hasn’t deterred her and, at a glance, you might not think it has even slowed her. In April of 2023, she’ll be vying for the title of Mrs. Colorado and, hopefully for Mrs. America in August.
“What I hear more than anything else is "You don't look like you have Alzheimer's,” Joanna said. “And to that I respond: ‘Neither do you!’”
That is the spirit that drives Joanna Fix to spread the message that those living with dementia are not so different from them.
“My motivation for pursuing the title of Mrs. Colorado is reaching more people to eliminate the stigma associated with Alzheimer’s and dementia in general, and setting an example for others who may feel that Alzheimer’s is something to be ashamed of,” Joanna said. “I hope I am a motivation for others living with Alzheimer’s that there is life to be lived after diagnosis, and a GOOD life, not just an existence.”
Not a predictable life
The daughter of a Marine, Joanna was raised to tough it out. That philosophy was put to the test in her early ‘40s. In 2010, at the peak of her academic career, she walked away from a serious automobile accident in which the other driver – who rear-ended Joanna’s car – died at the scene. But within a year, the first cracks in the façade of her memory began to appear. The accomplished multi-tasker was exhausted. She’d fall asleep in her work clothes. She began to worry that her students weren’t getting value from her.
Her first visit to a neurologist came at age 43. An MRI showed extreme atrophy in her brain. While there was mention of Alzheimer’s in her medical records, doctors didn’t deliver a diagnosis. After several years of consultations with doctors, she finally received a diagnosis at age 48: Alzheimer’s.
While no one, least of all Joanna, will ever celebrate the onset of Alzheimer’s disease, she did acknowledge that she feels more hopeful now than at any time since her diagnosis.
“When you don’t know what you’re dealing with, it’s like you’re sitting at a red light forever,” she said. “The worst thing that can happen (for a person living with Alzheimer’s) is not knowing. You have to keep going until you get an answer. Life is better when you know what you’re facing.”
The importance of an early diagnosis
Now that Joanna has the platform of Mrs. Colorado Springs, she hopes that it will encourage more people to seek an early diagnosis to determine if any cognitive issues they are experiencing may be Alzheimer’s or another medical issue that could mimic the symptoms of dementia, such as depression, nutritional deficiencies, thyroid disease, Lyme disease, urinary tract infections or other causes.
Given the challenges she faced getting her own Alzheimer’s diagnosis, Joanna is passionate about the cause.
“Physicians need to be totally transparent when it comes to making a diagnosis, I believe it ties into their Hippocratic oath to ‘do no harm,’” she said. “Nothing is worse than not knowing what you are living with.
“There is research that shows if people with dementia can be identified earlier in their diagnosis, it can have enormous implications for the individual and their caregivers in terms of quality of life,” said Meg Donahue, director of Community Engagement for the Alzheimer’s Association of Colorado. “In addition, studies show that it can save up to 15 percent of the eventual cost of care.”
The Association has a free program, TrialMatch, which matches individuals with Alzheimer’s, caregivers, healthy volunteers and physicians with current Alzheimer’s studies. The continuously updated database contains information on hundreds of promising clinical studies being conducted at sites across the country.
“I don’t know how anyone can get along with this disease without the help of the Alzheimer’s Association,” Joanna said. “We attended support groups with another couple, which is helpful to understand that other people are going through this too and having a similar experience. The Association gave us so much stability, education and support.”
Alzheimer's Association
The Alzheimer's Association leads the way to end Alzheimer's and all other dementia — by accelerating global research, driving risk reduction and early detection, and maximizing quality care and support. Our vision is a world without Alzheimer's and all other dementia.™ For more information, visit www.alz.org or call the 24/7 Helpline at 800.272.3900.