'I thought her personality had just changed': Broadcaster An Sun-young reveals she missed her mother's early dementia signs

Broadcaster An Sun-young has opened up about the years she failed to recognize her mother's early dementia symptoms — a period that led her to cut off contact entirely.

A video titled "Your parents' behavior like this could be early dementia" was posted Thursday on her YouTube channel "An Sun-young's Double Life."

An said the outpouring of responses after she first disclosed her mother's dementia diagnosis prompted her to make the video. "I got a lot of questions asking why it was dementia when she looked perfectly fine on the outside," she said. "I really wanted to talk about dementia."

"It's easy to think of dementia as simply a disease that causes memory loss," she said, "but there are warning signs that even family members can easily miss."

An said her mother's irritability and anger intensified after completing breast cancer surgery and chemotherapy. "She would lose her temper more easily than usual, and the pattern of being unable to control her emotions kept repeating," she said.

An, who lived with her mother for 14 years before marriage, recalled her mother's character: "She was incredibly tenacious, and she became a widow in her early 30s, raising me alone for a long time — she was a frightening woman who had difficulty expressing affection."

She described one incident during early pregnancy when she missed her mother's calls because she had been sleeping. "She must have thought I was avoiding her on purpose, because she came to my home, broke in through the door, cursed at me and lost control of her emotions — and ultimately grabbed me by the hair," An said.

"I was so shocked that I said, 'You're no longer my mother. I want to cut ties,' and I didn't see her until after I gave birth," she said. "Honestly, I didn't even want to call her when I was in labor. I was so shocked that I cut off the relationship completely."

"At the time I was so resentful and angry. I couldn't understand why a person had suddenly changed so much," she added.

"At the time I really thought her personality had just changed, but looking back now, it was early dementia," An said. "She couldn't regulate her emotions and her personality had become erratic." She said it was only after learning of the diagnosis that she realized her mother had been a patient all along.

An doubled down on the importance of early diagnosis, saying, "I strongly recommend seeking out a specialist and getting tested without hesitation."

Her mother currently lives in a professional care facility.

"If you care for a patient only at home, the whole family can wear out," An said. "The realistic approach is to look into a trustworthy facility as soon as possible and get on the waiting list in advance."

An has been caring for her mother for eight years. Currently staying in Canada due to her son's studies abroad, she travels back and forth to Seoul for hospital visits and broadcasting work.