Are your memories becoming a blur? Are you forgetting even the simple things?

"It's been a long haul," said Derrick McCray.

That's how the owner of McCray's Backyard Barbeque and Seafood in Mangonia Park describes the past two years of his life.

"I had forgotten a lot of stuff," he said.

In 2020, he was sick with COVID-19 for months and believes it affected his memory.

"I could not feel the sharpness or clarity that I needed to go back and say, yeah, I faintly remember this, and somebody would say you don't remember this or you don't remember that and I would say I'm trying," McCray said.

Dr. James Goldenberg, a neurologist and co-founder of the Jem Research Institute hasn't treated McCray, but said many people have experienced some form of memory loss.

"The pandemic has had a significant impact on people's memory. Several contributing factors I think stress, anxiety, depression, and isolation can all impact memory," Goldenberg said.

He believes some people will be affected more than others.

"It's that sense that you're having trouble thinking of things, you're having trouble recalling things, the sense that your brain and your mind are moving more slowly," Goldenberg said.

He adds people may forget common things, like they might misplace an item.

"Talk about forget the keys, forget where I'd put them. I'm in the car and I'm getting ready to turn on the car and I'm like hold up I don't have keys. Then I walk back in the house and don't remember where I sat them. And I'm tearing up everything looking for them and they're sitting right on the counter," McCray said.

For McCray, it was oftentimes the simple things he would forget, like names and faces.

"I had to go back and look at old pictures, old TV clips, certain points in history, for me to catch back up to where I'm at today," McCray said.

If you feel like your memory isn't quite what it used to be, first of all, remember we are all two years older.

Goldenberg said there are some things you can do to improve your memory work on improving your sleep, avoid alcohol, caffeine or even eating before bedtime.

A good diet and nutrition can also help. Socialization is also key — being around people can lift your mood.

The Davis family likes to reminisce in photos of their world travels. Carrie Davis is the daughter of Jim and Paula Davis. They call themselves the three musketeers because they’ve traveled to nearly all the continents together. However, their wings were recently clipped after Jim was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.

“What are some of your hobbies?" Carrie asked her father.

"Hobbies...," Jim contemplated before Carrie helped refresh his memory with some charades of herself fishing.

"Fly fishing," Jim said. "There we go. Thank goodness. I would have forgotten that I was doing that.”

Alzheimer’s is a degenerative disease of the brain that affects memory, awareness, social conversation and speech. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, more than 6 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s.

Carrie and Paula say they’ve noticed some drastic differences in what Jim can remember, but his humor still shines through.

“You heard the gorgeous part, didn't you?" Jim said. "She was talking to me."

They say they need to embrace who he is today, celebrating the fact that he is always very present. Humor is what gets them through difficult times. And even though they’re aware his Alzheimer's will continue to get worse, they’re hopeful Jim can make a difference for future generations.

Jim has been involved in two clinical trials since his diagnosis. Dr. Jack Klapper from Mile High Research Center is his neurologist.

“We've been all-in on the trials because, I mean, in my thought, what is there to lose?" Carrie said.

Carrie and Paula say they want to encourage other families dealing with Alzheimer’s to get involved since it impacts so many people and is a devastating disease that’s often inherited.

“In the five years that we've been doing these trials, we've never missed one appointment," Paula said. "He's committed. I'm committed. I am really committed, because you can't take this lightly.”

Significant progress has been made in recent years regarding Alzheimer’s research. A treatment called Aduhelm was approved by the FDA in June of this year. Kristen Clifford is a chief program officer for the Alzheimer’s Association.

“Aduhelm is the newly approved treatment for mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer's and mild Alzheimer's dementia," Cllifford said. "The Alzheimer's Association welcomes the accelerated approval from the FDA at the helm, as this is the first treatment that addresses the underlying biology of the disease and not just the disease symptoms.”

However, the treatment has come with some controversy. It is not covered by insurance. Some families are hesitant to pay for a treatment that they fear will not be effective and some doctors remain skeptical.

“A lot of my fellow neurologists and Alzheimer's doctors are probably not going to use it, because they didn't think it was that good,” Dr. Klapper said.

Nonetheless, the Alzheimer’s Association stresses that Aduhelm has FDA approval. The nonprofit encourages patients to have informed conversations with their healthcare professionals.

“The Alzheimer’s Association is dedicated to eliminating barriers to make sure that anyone who could potentially benefit from the treatment does have access to it,” Clifford said.

One thing everyone can agree on is optimism that we are making great progress in the treatment of Alzheimer’s.

“I think we will end up at some point like we are today with AIDS that we might have multiple drugs combined into one injection as a treatment, not just one thing, but maybe two or three different things," Dr. Klapper said.

For now, Paula and Kristen are appreciating every day they have Jim.

“He’s not doing very well, but he's happy," Paula said. "That's the one thing I am so grateful for. You can see that he's happy.”

And they're still getting in laughs whenever they can.

“When we meet someone, I say, 'Hey, just so you know, my dad has Alzheimer's,'" Carrie said. "And he usually says..."

"I do?” Jim said.

Related video above: The latest in the search for Gabby Petito's fiance Brian Laundrie.

While the FBI is adjusting its sails in the search for Gabby Petito's fiancé, Brian Laundrie, people across the country are delivering flowers to the Laundrie home in North Port, Florida, in an effort to honor Petito's life.

Those within the community are hand-delivering flowers to the home, but those from afar are paying for flowers to be delivered.

Petito's remains were found in a camping area in Wyoming's Bridger-Teton National Forest last week near where the couple had last been seen, and a coroner has ruled her death a homicide. Laundrie's parents told investigators they have not seen their son since Sept. 14, when he left their home with a backpack, saying he was going to a nearby nature reserve.

For days now, Petito has been honored in communities across the country: A memorial was held on Sunday in Holbrook, New York, near Petito's hometown on Long Island and a vigil was held in Salt Lake City last Wednesday.

"I felt compelled to participate because the silent treatment is a profound way to completely invalidate a victim ... essentially denying their existence ... and sending #flowersforgabby to the Laundrie family is a way of saying, we will not let you give Gabby and other victims the silent treatment," Stephanie Harris, one of the people who sent flowers to the Laundrie home told CNN. "She was here."

That's why all the way from Chicago, with no real connection to Petito or Laundrie families, she felt compelled to send flowers in an effort to support Petito and let others know that she will not be forgotten.

The FBI is focusing on intelligence-based leads after officials spent more than 10 days searching through a 25,000-acre nature reserve in North Point, Florida, according to police, and visited Laundrie's family home to request personal items of his to assist with DNA matching, the Laundries' lawyer told multiple news outlets.

"It is well known that the 'silent treatment' is a tactic of emotional abuse," Harris said. "And by refusing to acknowledge her [Petito], on a real and human level, the [Laundrie] family has perpetuated the silent treatment."

It appears the memorial outside of the Laundrie home began Monday, Josh Taylor, North Port public information officer told CNN Tuesday.

A reporter posted a video on Twitter suggesting the police would be removing the flowers outside Laundrie's home, but so far the police department hasn't received any complaints, but if they do, Taylor said they "will document and advise those impacted to contact the flower company and request to cease deliveries."

Like Harris, Stephanie Savage in Houston, Texas, was also motivated to send a flower arrangement on Sunday and it was delivered Monday, marking one of the first deliveries to the Laundrie home.

"I wanted the memorial to Gabby to start in their [Laundries'] front yard because she lived there and then that exploded on Twitter, everybody was like 'I want in,' Savage told CNN. "Initially, I just wanted some recognition for Gabby that she's not going to be forgotten. I understand the focus right now is on the Laundrie family, but she was the ultimate victim here."

Now, Savage wants people to pivot from flower deliveries to monetary donations to foundations "that help women in these situations so they don't end up like Gabby," she said. "I don't want her to be forgotten."

Lilith Cain also arranged for flowers to be delivered from Springville, Indiana, and told CNN she and members of a Facebook group have bonded over being domestic violence survivors themselves, a love for internet sleuthing and true crime in general.

"We all jumped on board, spreading the hashtag across all social media, hoping to fill the entire lawn," she said. "It was a way to keep pressure on the Laundries, but in a beautiful way that memorializes Gabby. Peaceful protest, so to speak."