WABC/7's Bill Ritter opens up about his Alzheimer's diagnosis

Appearing Monday on "Good Morning America," former WABC/7 anchor Bill Ritter opened up more about his Alzheimer’s diagnosis, which he had revealed Friday at the end of the 6 p.m. "Eyewitness News" edition. The diagnosis led to his decision to step down from the anchor desk.

On "GMA" he talked more about the aftermath of the announcement, and shed light on the beginning stages of his diagnosis.

"My first reaction was, I thought about my dad," Ritter said, referring to his father, who had Alzheimer's and died in 1998. "That was immediate. He just popped into my head."

He was also thinking about his wife and children.

"I quickly moved into husband/dad place," Ritter said. "Because Alzheimer's really affects the family most. As a dad and a husband, I said, 'I gotta deal with this. This is my family. And that's what I'm really worried about.' 

"They're the real tough ones in this," he continued. "My kids say, 'Dad, you're so brave in all this.' And I'm not the one who is brave. It's my kids and my wife who are the brave ones. That's really the real case here."

Ritter decided to break the news to his audience on Friday. "I figured I owed it to the viewers to be honest about this," he said.

Ritter added that,  following his announcement, many people have reached out to share the impact Alzheimer's had on family members.

"There was such an outpouring this weekend of love and support," Ritter said. "I have heard from hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of people who are sending out notes, posting everywhere, sending me emails."

Ritter, 76, said he first began having memory issues about two years ago. "I realize I was forgetting people's names and places," he recalled. "Didn't know why this was happening."

He said his wife, Kathleen, also noticed changes, though no one else seemed to.

At first, Ritter blamed his intense work schedule. He cut back his anchoring duties, first stepping away from Ch. 7's 11 p.m. newscast and then leaving the 5 p.m. 

"I was sleeping for the first time at night; for the first time in 25 years," Ritter said. "Finally getting a decent night's sleep and it wasn't getting better."

That's when he decided to get tested.

Despite the diagnosis, Ritter said he still plans on working in journalism for the foreseeable future.

"I am going to continue working right here on ABC/7. I will continue helping the younger journalists here at ' Eyewitness News.' "