After decades of tinkering with Photoshop on a decrepit Macintosh, he upgraded to an iPad and began uploading collages of photos he took on nighttime walks around London to Flickr and then to Instagram. The likes came rolling in. A photographer from Venezuela applauded his composition. A violinist in Italy struck up a conversation about creativity.
An estimated 7 million Americans age 65 and older are currently living with Alzheimer's; by 2050, that number is expected to rise to nearly 13 million. These diseases can make simple tasks confusing, language hard to understand, and memory fleeting, none of which is conducive to social connection.
When my father turned on his iPad again about a year after his seizure, he couldn't find the Photoshop app because the logo had changed. Instagram, which now had Reels and a shopping tab, was unnavigable.
Of all the losses caused by Alzheimer's, the one that pains him the most is the sense of connection he once had with his friends online, which has now been severed.
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