November Is National Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month
Courtesy of: http://www.silverspringcenter.com/Healthy/alzheimers.htm
Twenty five years ago, November was designated as National Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month. At the time, fewer than 2 million Americans had Alzheimer’s. Today, as many as 5.2 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease – 120,000 of them in Massachusetts. Alzheimer’s can occur as young as age 35, and is currently the sixth leading cause of death in the country. By 2050, 11 to 16 million people will likely have Alzheimer’s.
“While there is much we don’t yet know about Alzheimer’s disease, tremendous progress has been made since 1983,” said James Wessler, President and CEO of the Alzheimer’s Association MA/NH Chapter. “In November we focus on raising awareness of Alzheimer’s disease and shedding light on the importance of finding breakthroughs in diagnosis, prevention, treatments and, eventually, a cure.” The Alzheimer’s Association will be offering educational programs throughout the state during the month of November. To find out what activities are planned in your area visit the Alzheimer’s Association website at www.alz.org/MA
The Alzheimer’s Association is the leading voluntary health organization in Alzheimer care, support and research.
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Paula Spencer, Caring.com senior editor
Dementia Caregivers: You Really Ought to Talk About It
If it seems like a new dementia or Alzheimer’s preventative measure is heralded every week, well, that’s not true. It’s more like two and three a week. Coffee. Wine. Fish oil. Avoiding diabetes. (That’s this week’s round-up.)All intriguing findings… but not very practically useful if your parent already has dementia. In that case there’s something you may need more than fish oil: Therapy. A new nine-year study by the University of Minnesota School of Nursing finds that individualized, long-term counseling reduces the burden on dementia caregivers and cuts their depressive symptoms (depression also fingered as a Alzheimer’s risk factor).Providing care to someone with dementia is so hard that you really do need a hand. And an ear. Yet caregivers often reject outside support, say social workers. Speaking at the 2008 Aging in America conference, psychologist Barry Jacobs, author of The Emotional Survival Guide for Caregivers, cited three reasons why:
- Denial (“I can handle everything, there’s no problem!”)
- The stigma (“Therapy is for really messed up people”)
- Self-reproach about the ambivalence they feel toward caregiving. (“I’m glad to care for Mom but man, some of it is not pleasant — and I feel guilty about feeling that way, which I don’t want to admit to anybody.”) Even those who are glad to do it may feel guilt about not loving caregiving’s unpleasant sides.
Maybe also a feeling things aren’t too bad yet? (Best not to wait til the crisis point.) Or not knowing where to find a therapist? (One starting point: here.)
“What can’t be cured must be endured.” — Charlton Heston (Oct. 4, 1924 – April 5, 2008)
November 16, 2009
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