It’s wonderful news for Chidiogo Akunyili, daughter of the Late Dora Akunyili, as she gets married to her love, Andrew.
The writer wrote a post on Instagram describing how her relationship with her new hubby has been, writing how blessed she is to have him. She described how she had written down the type of man she wanted and sure enough, 7 months later he appeared.
Read excerpts:
“Celebrating our civil union. Excited for all the white & colourful celebrations with friends and family to come. Thank you Andrew for being a daily reminder of the miracles that exist in this world and the power we have to tap into it.
On a cold February evening in Geneva, I wrote down words that I feel connected our destinies & led our paths to cross 7 months later in the deserts of Nevada. “Monday, 8 Feb 2016. Geneva – Clayton asked that I do a true exercise of what I want. Here goes. I seek a partnership with a strong man, mind, body and spirit. I seek a partnership with a man who will cherish, love and honour me & the life we build together, supporting each other through the journey with kindness, love, a smile & words that put difficulties in perspective. He will not be away from home all the time but have a career that allows for him to assist strongly and sometimes wholly in building a home for us and for the children. He will be conscious and inspire us to grow in consciousness. He will be full of kindness and have a depth of love that leaves us inspired by what two people can achieve together. He will hold me and we will give gratitude. He will be flexible. He is adventurous/open to new experiences. He is happy in himself & together we share happiness in God and Love.”
7 months later after strong guidance came to me to go to Burning Man — I met him. It was a story of the union of souls. I felt I had written him to existence and rejoiced in the connection we shared. One I know started with a decision to focus on the wholeness of my own soul — self love — & from the space of taking time for self I was ready to take time for another’s soul and him mine in turn. I was not looking for a man so save me but a man to hold me up in my own strength. Together we continue to weave a web of care, love, strength, that isn’t without its difficulties but I’m learning & growing with & from them.
I say yes to a life spent together in partnership — to holding each other up outwardly and on the inside — to loving every part of ourselves and each other knowing we have the power to create and re-create from a place of peace with what is & the infinity that can be.”
Here Is the post.
I have personal experience with how the disease can affect not only the patient, but also family and friends. When I was about 11 or 12, I got really interested in using technology for social good to help other people around the world,” says Yang, who is now 14.
In her app under development, called Timeless, Alzheimer’s patients can scroll through photos of friends and family, and the app will tell them who the person is and how they’re related to the patient using facial recognition tech. If a patient doesn’t recognize someone in the same room, they can take a picture and the tech will also try to automatically identify them.
“I saw a lot of things about how AI and facial recognition were really evolving and being applied in more and more areas, especially healthcare,” she says. She partnered with mentors at the tech company Kairos, which makes the facial recognition software that is now used by the app, and learned to code for the iPhone for the first time.The app also includes a simple reminder screen that lists appointments for the day, along with a simple contacts screen that shows photos of family members along with names. If a patient tries to call a contact repeatedly–something that can sometimes happen because of the disease–the app will flash a quick reminder: “Are you sure you want to call? You just called less than five minutes ago.” A “me” page shows the patient’s own name, age, phone number, and address.
A caregiver maintains some of the other parts of the app, including putting events on the daily calendar, and inviting friends and family to send an initial set of photos that the facial recognition algorithm can use to learn to identify them.
The app is still in development, and Yang doesn’t yet have proof that it will work. In a crowdfunding campaign, she’s raising money to take the next step of piloting it with patients. But she is optimistic that it can help, especially if introduced to someone in the early stages of the disease.
“There are no apps on the market that really help Alzheimer’s patients with their daily lives,” she says. “A lot of times people think that it’s not going to help, or the elderly can’t really use technology, but in fact, if you strategically introduce it to them, it’s actually a possibility and can really benefit their lives.”
Katherine Possin, an associate professor at the UCSF Memory and Aging Center who was not involved with the project, agrees. “It can be hard for somebody who has a lot of cognitive impairment or memory problems to learn a new technology or software,” Possin says. “But if somebody’s mild in their disease, and with support from their caregiver, it’s possible that if the app is simple enough that they can learn to use it through repetition and practice.”
Scrolling through the labeled photos, Possin says, can be a type of social activity for the patient, helping keep family members and friends in mind. It also could strengthen memory. “I think it can be very helpful for patients to rehearse memories that are important to them–having a chance to rehearse that can strengthen those memories and make them stronger and make them more resilient in the face of the disease.”
Yang recently shared her story on a podcast called Sincerely Hueman.