Guest article by Sarah Blanchard People are not usually aware of nursing home abuse until it affects their family, directly. Each year, thousands of people living in care facilities are abused. A two-page National Center on Elder Abuse Research Brief cites a 2010 study that 50 percent of nursing home staff admitted to mistreating patients [...]
Lawrence Friedhoff, MD PhD Alzheimer's researcher Guest article by Lawrence Friedhoff, MD, PhD My work in Alzheimer’s disease therapeutics began about 20 years ago. After completing my medical training, I was interested in exploring another side of medicine—how new drugs are developed. Attitudes toward dementia have changed drastically over the past two decades. Back then, [...]
Virginia Simpson, PhD, FT, author The Space Between Guest Post Virginia A. Simpson, PhD, FT When beloved celebrities like David Bowie, Alan Rickman, Abe Vigoda, and Maurice White die, we remember the sights and sounds of their performances, the joy and laughter they triggered. Grieving for these beloved strangers can be intense—and may even serve [...]
Guest article by Fay Wein Most people don’t think of the bathroom as being one of the most dangerous rooms in the house. If a loved one is planning to age in place, especially one with a cognitive impairing disease such as Alzheimer’s, the bathroom will be an important area to remodel. The goal of [...]
As elders transition into new homes and living situations they often feel displaced, disoriented, or even depressed. Caregivers and other senior care professionals have an increasing responsibility to learn how to support older adults as they face moving into assisted living and other community settings. Moving later in life produces a great deal of stress [...]
Guest article by Chris Seman and Nan Hayes For people like Laura Osorio, the dramatic increase in Alzheimer’s and dementia cases is presenting new challenges and new opportunities. As owner of the Caring Transitions franchise in Boca Raton, Laura helps Floridians “rightsize” before they move into a new residence. For older Americans and the more [...]
8 Tips for Caregivers Click on link at bottom of page for a full-sized free printable copy. Eight TIPS for Alzheimer’s / dementia caregivers. The following tips for caregivers include learning as much as you can about Alzheimer’s / dementia, how to communicate, deal with anger, the importance of taking respite, and using support groups [...]
Memory loss. Forgetting names, appointments, and recent information. Difficulty performing familiar tasks , such as preparing a meal, using an appliance, or engaging in a hobby. Problems with language. Trying to find the right word, for example, to express a common item such as a hairbrush or key. Disorientation to time and place. Examples include [...]
The idea of “aging in place” (remaining at home) is certainly appealing to many elders and their family members. But as situations change, there comes a time when staying at home can become a source of stress rather than a comfort. The question is, how do you know when that time has come? Relocating from [...]
Keeping an active mind with intellectual pursuits in midlife may delay the onset of Alzheimer's disease symptoms, but it does not appear to prevent the physical changes in the brain for most people, a new study finds. "Studies have shown that it reduces the onset of symptoms," said lead author Prashanthi Vemuri of the Mayo [...]
Barre Dowd now lives in his own apartment, with a little help from housing specialist Jeanette Conway, left, and case manager Maria Haddad, right. State health officials say we’re spending too much on nursing homes. Instead, they say, we could be caring for people, for less money, at home. There’s a new effort to do [...]
Institutionalized patients, including those with Alzheimer’s, sometimes find new romance. (Marko Georgiev/The New York Times) Sometimes Alzheimer’s disease means losing a loved one twice. As the disease ravages the brain and erases memory, patients who have been married for years, even most of their lives, may stop recognizing their spouses. And sometimes, in a phenomenon [...]
Margaret Randell longs for protective care facility to open while husband waits in St. John’s CLARENVILLE, N.L. — Every couple of weeks, Margaret Randell comes to the site of the yet-to-be-opened protective care community residence in Clarenville and peers in through the window. Other news She’s waiting for her husband to be transferred to the [...]
There may still be a lot of jokes about “the old folks’ home,” but many senior living facilities these days are getting with the times. These residences are installing services and changing their designs to better fit the new generations of senior citizens, and in the process making them a more appealing option for a [...]
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About 15 years ago, I was invited to join a knitting group. My reluctant response — “When would I do that ?” — was rejoined with “Monday afternoons at 4,” at a friend’s home not three minutes’ walk from my own. I agreed to give it a try. Click here to view original web page [...]
When I asked the other three members of my walking group, all of whom are in their mid to upper 70s, whether they had any concerns about future living arrangements, they each said they had none despite the fact that, like me, they live in multistory private homes without elevators and, in two cases, without [...]
Photo Paul Rogers A recently published book, “70Candles! Women Thriving in Their 8th Decade,” inspired me to take a closer look at how I’m doing as I approach 75 and how I might make the most of the years to come. It would be a good idea for women in my age cohort to do [...]
By 2025, the elderly population (both in the United States and globally) is expected to double, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. This means that many of us will be dealing with senior-aged parents -- something that you may not be completely prepared for. As they age, your parents will begin to need more and [...]
Your mother resists in-home helpers, insisting you can wait on her. Your frail father won't stop driving. Your aunt denies the need for a personal care aide, in spite of her unwashed hair and soiled clothes. Your grandmother refuses to move to an assisted living facility "because it's full of old people." Sound familiar? Nothing [...]