I want family caregivers to know that placement does not mean you failed. It does not mean you are a rotten son, daughter, partner, spouse, sibling or friend. It means that you are continuing to care for the person with dementia. You are looking for the best option for ALL concerned.
Do you find yourself thinking the following thoughts? “Am I doing this right?” “Did I do everything I could to make her feel safe and happy? And did I do enough?” “I want some time for myself, but I feel guilty leaving him alone.”
, I am going to describe why and how common two medications are commonly prescribed for people living with dementia: acetylcholine esterase inhibitors (pronounced a-SEE-tol-CO-leen ES-ter-ace) and memantine (prounounced meh-MAN-teen).
Valentine’s Day is traditionally about romance. It celebrates the fun side of love. For many carers and care partners of persons living with dementia, love is demonstrated daily through multiple acts of kindness and dignity. Here is my Valentine’s message to these heroes. Send a care partner that you know something special this Valentine’s Day.
People living with dementia should only be driving if it is safe. The answers to 7 questions can help you decide next steps.
Ten strategies for managing care refusals: entering their reality, bridging, distraction, hand-over-hand, mirror-mirror, vibes, ask for help, apologize with praise, rewards, and rescue.
The holidays are a time of family togetherness. Unfortunately, the holidays are also a time when families may start to notice that grandmother is having memory problems and now feel a sense of urgency to “do something.” Or, now that everyone knows that dad has been diagnosed with dementia, the […]
Holidays can be wonderful, exhausting, amazing, and problematic all at the same time. Add being a dementia caregiver, and things get complicated! This year may be worse, because many families could not spend time together thanks to last winter’s coronavirus surge! In this blog, I offer simple tips to make any holiday–especially this Thanksgiving, Hanukah, Yule, and Christmas–dementia friendly ( and keep you from wanting to strangle any ‘helpful’ family members!).
Why do people with dementia refuse help? Learn the three main reasons in this post!!
At the time of this writing, Tony Bennett gave a concert with Lady Gaga. In spite of severe memory loss, Mr. Bennett gave a flawless performance. This is an example of procedural memory. In Mr. Bennett’s case, he had sung his songs thousands of times over decades. His “library of […]