Coach Summitt Prepares for Battle Against Unseen Opponent
A peculiar kind of living agony must be had by those who are diagnosed with psyche-robbing disorders, like Alzheimer’s disease, while they remain aware that they’re being robbed of whatever makes them them. A recent case in point is that of Pat Summitt, legendary coach of the UT women’s basketball team, who was recently diagnosed with early-onset AD.
In this Washington Post clip (along with a funny and moving write-up by the coach’s friend and the coauthor of Summitt’s 1999 autobiography), there are subtle, but definite, halts in Summitt’s speech that hint at her early, mental disability—which troubled family (primarily her incredibly stalwart son), friends, and UT colleagues early on and ultimately brought Summitt to the attention of physicians at the Mayo Clinic—where she received her diagnosis 3 months ago.
Photo of Summitt on one of many of her days of basketball victory; from the UT website.
A native East Tennessean, Barbara Martin is a formerly practicing, board-certified neurologist who received her BS (psychology, summa cum laude) and MD from Duke University before completing her postgraduate training (internship, residency, fellowship) at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. She has worked in academia, private practice, medical publishing, drug market research, and continuing medical education (CME). For the last 3 years, she has worked in a freelance capacity as a medical writer, analyst, and consultant. Follow Dr. Barbara Martin on Google + and Twitter.
