Robin tragically committed suicide in 2014 at the age of 63. The incident rocked the entertainment industry and left millions of admirers in mourning over the passing of such a cherished actor and somebody who made the world laugh.
Many people are unaware that Robin’s suicide was not driven by depression, but rather by Lewy body dementia, a rare kind of dementia that affects the brain.
The last days of his life
A striking pattern of behavior emerged in Robin’s final year of life. As he started displaying symptoms including confusion, forgetfulness, paranoia, hallucinations, anxiety, personality changes, and difficulties moving, his friends, family, and coworkers in the film industry could tell he wasn’t himself.
Even though Robin could sense something was amiss, he had no idea what was going on with him, why it was occurring, or how to stop it.
Numerous medical professionals were consulted by Robin and his wife Susan Schneider Williams, but they were unable to determine the cause of his unexpected demise.
Lewy body dementia, a less frequent type of dementia that affects an estimated 1.4 million people in the US, was discovered during an autopsy performed after his death.
Susan became as knowledgeable as she could about LBD and how it might have been able to explain Robin’s symptoms after Robin passed away.
Soon after, she bravely stood up in front of the public and disclosed what the autopsy on Robin had revealed.
Since then, Susan has transformed into a champion for Lewy body dementia awareness, research, and education, disseminating knowledge about this terrible condition in the hope that no one else will go through what she and Robin did.
Robin Williams illness
The actor was identified as having Lewy body dementia in October 2014 after having his brain autopsied.
At the Life Itself conference, a health and wellness gathering put on in association with CNN, Schneider Williams, an artist and supporter of LBD awareness and research, stated: “He was given a Parkinson’s (disease) diagnosis a few months before he passed.” “But that was just the tip of the iceberg.”
After Robin had been exhibiting serious memory, mobility, personality, reasoning, sleep, and mood abnormalities, the incorrect diagnosis was made in May 2014.
The comedian had undergone numerous tests to figure out what was wrong, the majority of which came back negative.
Schneider Williams told CNN in an interview that “none of the doctors knew that there was this ghost disease underlying all of this.” “When that was revealed, that was like essentially finding out the name of my husband’s killer.”
What is Lewy Body Dementia?
Among the most prevalent types of dementia is Lewy body dementia. It usually starts when a person is 50 years old or older, though it can sometimes affect younger people.
It is specifically linked to aberrant brain protein deposits termed alpha-synuclein deposits.
These deposits, known as Lewy bodies, affect the brain’s chemical balance, which may affect a person’s memory, language skills, problem-solving solving, and many more.