The difficult situation has upset many people.
B. Smith, a lifestyle guru often compared to Martha Stewart, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease six years ago. Her husband Dan Gasby, who has acted as her caretaker since then, landed himself in hot water after making his extramarital affair public. Many cite their belief in the sanctity of marriage as the reason for their disapproval. Others claim his relationship with his girlfriend Alex Lerner should have been kept private given Smith’s mental condition in addition to the values upon which she built her career.
Hours after he was slammed for shacking up with his girlfriend — in the same house where he lives with his sick wife — Gasby came to his own defense.
“To the idiots and ignorant people calling for my arrest and saying B is or has ever been abused I only wish someone in your immediate family has Alzheimer’s so you can see feel and experience the pain of millions of people across this country so you can know first hand what it’s like to care 24/7/365 for someone who can no longer care for themselves!” he wrote in a Facebook statement.
For those who missed it, the story initially went mainstream when Gasby released a video on the Washington Post this Monday, January 28, explaining his dynamic with Smith, 69, following her Alzheimer’s Disease diagnosis. He said that after she contracted the disease in 2013, his entire life changed as well.
Gasby described his wife of 27 years as “the perfect person” for him, saying that watching her dissolve due to her illness took him into depths of “despair and depression that no one will ever really understand.”
After his depression, he started dating Alex Lerner. The two have been going strong for about a year and a half, and she lives with him in the East Hampton home he shares with Smith when she visits from Manhattan.
While Gasby has been viciously slammed for his decision to have a girlfriend while caring for his wife, he has no regrets. In his mind, it’s what saved him from “disappearing” like Smith.
“B. Smith’s worst day is 10x better than you’ve experienced,” wrote Gasby to his haters. “I love my wife but I can’t let her take away my life!”
In the Washington Post video, Lerner, 53, said that as awkward as it may seem to outsiders, she and Smith are actually great friends, and always feel excited when they see each other.
“5-10 years from now when many of you who will have an almost predestined meeting with Alzheimer’s because of genetics, obesity, and a myriad of inflammatory diseases, you’ll be wishing for someone to share moments with and ease the pain of loneliness and despair. The clock is ticking I know I can and have manage this but can you do it too?” Dan Gasby added.
What do you guys make of all of this?
