From the desk of Rosemary Laird, MD
Founder of Navigating Aging Needs (NAN), LLC
Hot Times Are Coming!
I was taught at a young age by my parents not to gloat, so I’ll just settle for irony: I find it ironic that many of my friends and family are currently sweltering under a gigantic “heat dome” covering most of the eastern U.S. and pushing temperatures to above 100 degrees, while we here in Florida — the “heat capital of our nation” — are basking in cooler temperatures. “Come visit us down here in Florida and cool off,” is a phrase I thought I’d never utter to family members living up north during the summertime.
The Longest Day!
June 20th marks the Summer Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, the astronomical event where the earth’s axis of rotation tilts closest to the sun, resulting in our longest day and shortest night of the year.
Alzheimer's Awareness and You
In truth, I wish that Alzheimer's & Brain Awareness Month, which takes place during June, could be every month. Certainly, that’s the case for caregivers of the 55 million loved ones worldwide who are living with Alzheimer’s.
Improve Brain Health One Meal at a Time
“You are what you eat,” as the old saying goes, and those of us in the medical realm who treat aging Americans have long suspected that diet plays a big role in a person’s mental health. Now a new study confirms that there is a strong relationship between following the so-called MIND diet and reducing the risk of developing Alzheimer’s.
The Making of Memories
Though each person is affected uniquely, Alzheimer’s typically first impacts “short term” or “working” memory, where someone is unable to recall a conversation or directive from a few minutes ago. As the illness progresses, there can eventually be loss of long-term memory, with the result that your loved one loses the details of their personal history along with losses of “procedural” memory — how to do processes such as using a knife and fork, or tying one’s shoes.
Hot Times Are Coming!
High heat puts even more of a burden on caregivers of loved ones suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. Higher temperatures can lead to exhaustion, dehydration, and heat stroke, and studies have shown that the risk of death among people with Alzheimer’s and other dementias increases significantly during periods of high heat. Dehydration can also impact the efficacy of medications your loved one takes.
Alzheimer's and Motherhood
Aside from the enormous impact on mental and physical health that a caregiver experiences as a result of the stress of their day-to-day duties, there is also often a profound impact on the overall relationship between mother and her caregiver as the disease progresses. After all, each person has spent years in certain well-defined roles, and then in a short time many of the dynamics of the relationship may undergo dramatic changes.
Hope on the Horizon
Amid the everyday challenges of caring for a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease, there is often an overarching concern that every caregiver carries: How to stay hopeful for your loved one’s benefit.
Uncertain Times
Uncertainty can be nerve-wracking for a caregiver of a loved one suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s is a progressive disease, and so it is continually changing how your loved one’s brain behaves, sometimes in unexpected ways. Activities that were once everyday occurrences for your loved one may suddenly disappear; new and strange behaviors may arise.
The Family Ties That Bind
It’s important and sometimes all too fleeting, but even a brief period together as a family, if you can manage it, does a world of good to help everyone through troubling times. This can be even more true of family caregivers and our loved ones experiencing the changes of Alzheimer’s disease. Having the family around can make your loved one feel more comfortable in their surroundings, and gives them a chance, perhaps, to reminisce about family times in the past.
It's Time to Decide!
“Nothing is more difficult, and therefore more precious, than to be able to decide,” said Napoleon Bonaparte. He may have been talking about a battle in wartime. But for caregivers of loved ones suffering from Alzheimer’s, the enormous value — and often agonizing process — of planning for a serious health care event in the future has never been more important.
Reality is Relative
In the world of caregiving for a loved one suffering from Alzheimer’s, dealing with what is real and what is not can be extremely challenging, and even dangerous. Some instances can be mundane, such as when your loved one can’t remember an appointment or whether they’ve taken their medicine or not. In other, more serious cases, the ravages of Alzheimer’s may trigger delusions and paranoia.
The Power of Family
As the poet Walt Whitman once wrote, “I contain multitudes.” And indeed, as you go through your daily rounds of caregiving, remember the role that you and your loved one play in your family’s legacy, and how you each may be one of those 1,000-plus people that are related to a little baby that is born a century from now.
Balancing Act!
As a caregiver of someone suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, centering yourself and finding balance in your life is of utmost importance. That means taking care of your mental and physical health, staying connected with your community, getting help when you need it, and most importantly, setting realistic goals for what you can achieve.
Keeping Your Orbit!
Your caregiving activities create the ordinary cycles of daily life such as eating, sleeping, and bathing, keeping you “in orbit” with your loved one on a continual basis. I’m sure that as a caregiver, it can sometimes feel as though you are a satellite locked in a gravitational vise around your loved one’s needs. At the same time, the progression of the disease can sometimes change the overall dynamics of your relationship over time.
The Body Keeps the Time!
You can’t hear it go “tick tock,” but scientists have found that your body has its own internal clock. Based on internal rhythms of light, hormones, and eating, your body is pretty good at settling into a roughly 24-hour cycle of wakefulness and sleep, even without clocks.
Slam the Scam!
Older adults are often the target for scammers because the criminals believe that they have larger savings accounts. But low-income older Americans are also targeted, too, because the elderly tend to be less savvy about new technologies such as email, texts, and mobile phones.
Don't Lose Sleep Over This!
As a caregiver for a loved one suffering from Alzheimer’s, it may sometimes feel as though your day is as rigorous as a medical student in training! Your loved one's illness may impact their sleep habits, too, and therefore make it difficult for you to get restful sleep. As we always promote here at NAN Navigator, it’s crucial for you to optimize your self-care in addition to caring for your loved one, and that includes both of you adhering to good sleeping habits.
You Gotta Have Friends!
Several recent scientific studies support the idea that having strong social connections is a key to better health and a longer life — more than a person’s diet and exercise!
Money Talks!
Now that the sparkle has faded from the new year’s celebrations, it’s time to get down to some basics. One of those basics, which most people don’t enjoy thinking or talking about very much, is money. Yet doing a financial overview at this point in the year can help you prepare and adjust for the following months, giving you peace of mind and reducing your stress levels.