Goldie A.

Arradaza October 14, 2022

BS Psych-3 Ms. Rose Silmonet, RPm, RGC
Psych 308 - Abnormal Psychology

Case analysis of the movie “Still Alice”

Still Alice is a movie that pertains to a person who is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s
disease. The movie shows us what it is like to have, and how it feels to have the illness. The
main character in this movie is Dr. Alice Howland who’s been a respected professor of
linguistics at Columbia University for many years. She is a brilliant researcher who has
dedicated her life to helping others understand the complexities of language. When she reached
her 50th birthday, Dr. Allison seems to have lost words and sometimes she forgot some things
only to find out she was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's disease. Her case is very rare as
she is already diagnosed at a young age because traditionally, the disease strikes people who are
at least in their mid-60s. This type of Alzheimer’s disease is genetically linked and it is termed
Familial Alzheimer’s disease.
During the couple minutes of the film, there are already symptoms that we can see in Dr.
Alice. When Dr. Alice talks about her studies, she can't remember the word "lexicon," and when
she goes for a walk on the university campus, she can't remember where she is and can't find her
way. Furthermore, she cannot recall discussing certain events with her husband. The symptoms
that are shown in the movie are the primary behavioral symptoms of Alzheimer's disease. The
neurologist asks some personal questions about the causes of these experiences, such as drug use,
sleeping patterns, and head strikes, among other things. These questions are required to rule out
the various possible outcomes of these events. Following some exclusions, the neurologist
focuses on Alzheimer's symptoms and asks questions such as her name, address, where she is at
the time, what the date is, some spelling, and wants to remember a given name and address.
Alice answers the questions correctly, but she cannot recall the given address. This may lend to
the idea that she is still in the early stages of the behavioral symptoms.
Sadness and longing for hope are what the family of Dr. Alice feels when they know her
condition. Despite these emotions that they feel, they remain strong and will always be there for
Dr. Alice and they easily accept her and her condition even though it can be linked genetically
and this might affect their family soon. Her husband and her children, especially Lydia, have a
huge contribution to at least make them feel that Dr. Alice is not alone in her battle. All of her
family extends their patience, and understanding to her because they know there’s nothing they
can do because the illness is incurable. Their love, patience, and understanding toward Dr. Alice
are exemplary.
When I watched the movie, I felt sad and envious. I felt sad in the sense that when I
watched the movie, all I always thought about were my parents. My mother and father were
already in their mid-60s and 70s and they are old already. I am scared that one day, they will
experience this disease and how can I handle it? Envious in the sense that all the members of the
family are very patient, understanding, and loving towards Dr. Alice. I wish I had that kind of
brothers and sisters or I wish I will have that kind of family in the future.
Love, patience, understanding, and care towards the people who are suffering from
Alzheimer's disease are the important things that we should give them. The person who is
suffering from this disease really needs our help especially because these people are already in
the old age. There will be times that we don’t understand them but let us be reminded that they
are not the one that is controlling themselves but it is the disease that is controlling them. Let us
be brave in handling those people because no one knows it will be our parents that will be
experiencing this disease and I do pray that it won't happen to all of our parents.