{"id":304843,"date":"2021-07-21T21:16:06","date_gmt":"2021-07-21T18:16:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/robin-williams-son-reveals-fathers-struggle-with-dementia\/"},"modified":"2021-07-21T21:16:06","modified_gmt":"2021-07-21T18:16:06","slug":"robin-williams-son-reveals-fathers-struggle-with-dementia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/robin-williams-son-reveals-fathers-struggle-with-dementia\/","title":{"rendered":"#Robin Williams’ son reveals father’s struggle with dementia"},"content":{"rendered":"

“#Robin Williams’ son reveals father’s struggle with dementia<\/strong>”<\/p>\n

\n

The son of Robin Williams is speaking out about his father\u2019s psychological struggles as well as his own in the wake of the legendary comedia<\/a>n\u2019s death in a new podcast interview. <\/p>\n

Zak Williams, 38, sat down with writer and \u201cThe Genius Life\u201d host Max Lugavere for a long heart-to-heart, released Wednesday.<\/p>\n

Their candid conversation<\/a> included their mutual struggles with depression, anxiety and the pain of watching a loved one be consumed by a debilitating neurodegenerative disease: dementia with Lewy bodies. Both Lugavere and Williams watched a parent suffer through the \u201cfrustrating\u201d illness \u2014 the pain of which has left a lasting impact on both men.<\/p>\n

It was a poignant conversation to debut on the day that would have been Robin\u2019s 70th birthday.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I saw was frustration,\u201d said Williams of his father\u2019s diagnosis \u2014 and misdiagnosis. <\/p>\n

About two years before his death by suicide in 2014<\/a>, doctors told Williams that he had Parkinson\u2019s disease, a disorder of the central nervous system that affects movement, causing its signature tremors. <\/p>\n

But an autopsy would later reveal that Robin and his medical team had treated the wrong illness. \u201cWhat he was going through didn\u2019t match one to one [with] many Parkinson\u2019s patients\u2019 experience,\u201d said Robin\u2019s eldest child, whose mother is Valerie Velardi, the comic\u2019s first wife. <\/p>\n

\"Robin
Robin Williams\u2019 son Zak is speaking out about his late father\u2019s psychological struggle in a new podcast interview, released on what would have been the legendary comedian\u2019s 70th birthday.<\/figcaption>
Jamie McCarthy<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Williams believes his father\u2019s misdiagnosis likely exacerbated the emotional toll that dementia takes on patients. In the years Robin lived without knowing the full scope of his illness, his son observed his struggles to focus and the subsequent \u201cchallenges performing his craft,\u201d contributing to the actor\u2019s anxiety and depression prior to his death. <\/p>\n

\u201cLightning-quick recall \u2014 that was his signature [onstage],\u201d Williams said, referring to what his father lost to dementia.<\/p>\n

Both dementia with Lewy bodies, or DLB, and Parkinson\u2019s disease dementia, or PDD, are subtypes of dementia, marked by a buildup of proteins that clump together in neurons of the brain, inhibiting both the central and autonomic nervous systems.<\/p>\n

However, DLB distinguishes itself from the other subtype with symptoms including a notable decline in cognitive abilities and struggles with everyday mental activities such as planning, problem-solving, focusing and staying alert, according to theDavis Phinney Foundation for Parkinson\u2019s<\/a>. Hallucinations, sleep-walking, mood swings and physical rigidity are also characteristic of DLB. <\/p>\n

Furthermore, the development of PDD is not guaranteed in all Parkinson\u2019s patients \u2014 adding to Robin\u2019s confusion in the years prior to his death.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a period for him of intense searching and frustration,\u201d Williams said. \u201cIt\u2019s just devastating.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n
\"Zachary
Zak Williams at the 2016 opening of the Robin Williams Center for Entertainment and Media, an educational theater space honoring the late comedian, in New York City<\/figcaption>
WireImage<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

That devastation took its toll in the aftermath of his father\u2019s passing \u2014 in the form of post-traumatic stress disorder, alcoholism and depression: \u201cI was self-medicating through the trauma using alcohol.\u201d <\/p>\n

His waning health, which included bouts with psychosis, ultimately galvanized Williams to seek help \u2014 by helping others. \u201cI was just sick and tired of trying to treat myself using harmful means,\u201d said Williams, who transformed his negative experience into a positive one through advocacy. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is it I need to not only take care of myself, but to show up for others?\u201d he posed to Lugavere, who noted that men are four times more likely to die by suicide compared to women, according to studies. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think many [men] feel isolated; many don\u2019t have the outlets needed,\u201d said Williams, a father of two, who found strength in a 12-step program and other forms of group therapy. He sympathizes especially with those who lack access to mental health resources, due to cost or distance. Telehealth is working to extend access, he pointed out, but he encourages in-person connection in tandem. <\/p>\n

Especially in men, for whom the stigma of seeking mental health treatment is much higher, men\u2019s groups \u2014 at churches, bars or wherever else they find shared interests \u2014 can be a powerful source of inspiration and support. Men\u2019s groups particularly enable those seeking help \u201cto focus on issues at hand without interpersonal gender dynamics,\u201d Williams added. <\/p>\n

The activist and entrepreneur founded PYM, a mental-wellness company that specializes in \u201cneuro-nutrition.\u201d It was his battle with alcoholism that prompted his exploration of the subject, leading him to learn more about how nutrient deficiency impacts the brain and psychological health, such as the neurotransmitter Gamma-aminobutyric acid, or GABA, supplements of which made all the difference in his recovery. \u201cIt was like night and day,\u201d Williams said. <\/p>\n

Low levels of GABA in the brain have been associated with increased levels of anxiety and mood disorders. The amino acid has been nicknamed \u201cnature\u2019s Valium\u201d by some, according to Lugavere. <\/p>\n

PYM\u2019s products and other forms of supplementation are \u201cnot cures,\u201d Williams insisted, and should be used in tandem with a healthy diet, exercise and therapy, for some. \u201cThey don\u2019t solve for anxiety, but they try to address the root fixes.\u201d <\/p>\n

His goal as an advocate is to encourage people to think more about mental health in terms of physiological health: \u201cPeople need to understand what they need for their bodies.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at\u00a0800-273-8255.<\/em>\n <\/div>\n

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Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“#Robin Williams’ son reveals father’s struggle with dementia” The son of Robin Williams is speaking out about his father\u2019s psychological struggles as well as his own in the wake of the legendary comedian\u2019s death in a new podcast interview. Zak Williams, 38, sat down with writer and \u201cThe Genius Life\u201d host Max Lugavere for a…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":304844,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/07\/robin-zak-williams-002.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[112387,76437,70989,23498,26132,73247],"class_list":["post-304843","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-7-21-21","tag-dementia","tag-mental-health","tag-podcasts","tag-robin-williams","tag-suicide"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/304843","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=304843"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/304843\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/304844"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=304843"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=304843"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=304843"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}