As a caregiver to someone with dementia…
I looked for patterns all the time in her dementia. I thought of them as guides to help me deal with the manifestations of the illness. I believed this strategy was the way to help both my mother and myself. Only when I reached out to others for support did I realize how isolating my strategy had become.
Dementia &
Alzheimers
Caregiving
Journey &
Transitions
Most recent blog posts
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A Voice for dementia Caregivers: Healthy Senior Living Radio
I had the opportunity to meet with the staff of Smiles by Delivery www.SmilesByDelivery.com, an innovative service that brings professional and comprehensive dental care to those in senior retirement communities across the state of Arizona. Their mission: an in-house dental practice committed to helping elder care evolve through the use of innovative […]
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Caregivers as Change Leaders; a podcast series
Caregivers are often thrust into the role of caring for a loved one without any training or education. However, each and every day we do our best in a job more challenging than any other in the world. Listen to the monthly podcast series featured on Caregiving.com with Denise Brown. We focus our discussion on […]
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Love: Lost and Found on The Edge of Alzheimer’s
Alzheimer’s disease is now the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. Behind this statistic are 16 million Americans providing unpaid care to a loved one with Alzheimer’s or related dementias. The face of caregiving today is a family member or friend doing their best to survive the role of care partner. […]
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Reaching In: Finding Unexpected Moments Frontotemporal Dementia Caregiving
Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD, formerly known as Pick’s Disease) is less common than Alzheimer’s among the many forms of dementia. However like Alzheimer’s, FTD is untreatable, can be diagnosed as early as age 40 and is ultimately devastating to those living with the disease and those caring for a loved one. ROB’S STORY My wife […]
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Oral Health in dementia and Alzheimer’s: Reflections, perspectives and innovative services
One-in-ten seniors die from dental neglect. Most common can be inhaling bacteria found in dirty dentures, gum infections or poorly maintained teeth causing aspirational pneumonia. With Alzheimer’s disease now the sixth leading cause of death in the United States, oral health issues like these can put a loved one in our care at higher […]
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Loneliness in Crowded Spaces
Featured in Dr. Laura’s Relationship Post 2/26/18 Featured in Hitched Post 2/23/18 You’ve been successful managing most aspects of your complicated life and are proud of the relationships you’ve nurtured and maintained through it all. Whether you’re a baby boomer, a millennial or somewhere in between, research tells us that your odds of […]
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Love, Loss and Relationship Reality
I take my place in a comfortable chair at an Alzheimer’s support group session with the usual participants; mostly older women serving in the role of unpaid care partner to an aging loved one. At the opposite end of the room sitting quietly is a twenty-something, striking among the gray hairs with her […]
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Embodiment
Alzheimer and dementia caregivers experience firsthand the ravages of this disease. They stand witness to the decline of a loved one over the long arc of the illness. Subtle and not so subtle changes mark the passage of time and deterioration. Over our years together I know Vera Cappelletti’s distinctive style. My […]
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Tradition
Rob Backlund – The Longest Day Written by – Cheryl Herrick Featured in the Burlington Free Press June 2017 Special Insert Every Sunday, Rob Backlund of Burlington gathers envelopes and stamps and prints out seven copies of a letter. Each begins, “Dear Mr. President, I do not remember if I sent you this letter. […]
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Contemplation
A tremendous toll is exacted on family in the early phase of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease as we move from denial to acceptance. We live in fear of what will happen next, but in greater fear of hearing the diagnosis of this dreaded disease. A disease that will steal memories, relationships and ultimately life. […]
