Alzheimer's Disease Books

Burnout — the complete drain of physical, spiritual, and emotional reserves — occurs when a caregiver slips into exhaustion or depression. More and more frequently, the responsibility of caring for the chronically ill child, the disabled spouse, or the aging parent falls on a family member. From the decision to be a caregiver to dealing with day-to-day activities, this guide provides help with every aspect of home care. Also included in this edition are a checklist of tasks, a chapter on self-care and avoiding caregiver burnout, a glossary, and list of helpful resources.

The Majesty of Your Loving; A Couple's Journey Through Alzheimer's When Olivia and Hob received his diagnosis of Alzheimer s, the enormity of that prospect propelled them to make a pact with one another: they would navigate the illness consciously and lovingly to the end. The Majesty of Your Loving: A Couple s Journey Through Alzheimer s is their courageous story. Given this couple s rich background in psychology, Buddhist meditation, and the wisdom traditions, they were able to handle the pain and promise of the illness with unusual thoughtfulness. The author not only writes about the inspirations and spiritual perspectives that sustained them, but gives an intimate account of how they faced loss, crisis, and eventually death. This book has a distinctively positive and uplifting tone, revealing that ultimately their experience was about growing in wisdom and deepening in love. An indispensable guide for anyone dealing with loss, each chapter includes a self-help section with reflections, suggestions, and seed thoughts. This memoir, unique for its inclusive spiritual orientation, provides both hope and practical approaches to anyone dealing with mental loss or diminishment of any kind.

The Validation Breakthrough: Simple Techniques for Communicating with People with 'Alzheimer's-Type Dementia' This extraordinary book shows caregivers how they can interact successfully with people with dementia by avoiding reality orientation and instead focusing on underlying emotional needs. Based on the principles of Erik Erikson and on subsequent decades of work with disoriented older adults, the simple techniques of Validation are easy to learn, take just minutes a day, and can be used by both family and professional caregivers. Let the powerful techniques of internationally recognized expert Naomi Feil help you reach confused older adults by establishing respectful, loving relationships that break the silence of withdrawal. Discover new ways to meet the challenges of caring for people with dementia! Touching, amusing, and informative, The Validation Breakthrough shows caregivers how to dramatically enhance the quality of their relationships with people in the early to middle stages of dementing illnesses. Helpful, practical strategies will show you how to stop patronizing and arguing with people with dementia and start building trust by stepping into their world. Eighteen poignant case studies illustrate how Validation is used to handle wandering, agitation, and other challenging behaviors--and reduce the sense of anger and frustration in caregivers and clients alike. Essential reading for long-term care staff, gerontologists, social workers, and family members, The Validation Breakthrough is transforming the way caregivers communicate with people with dementia

Talking to Alzheimer's: Simple Ways to Connect When You Visit with a Family Member or Friend Few books manage to balance practical suggestions and loving sympathy as well as Talking to Alzheimer's, a concise and comprehensive guide to communication with both paid caregivers and their patients. While the title suggests focus on a specific disease, the recommendations are appropriate for any family struggling with serious communication issues, whether those issues are the result of stroke, surgery, disease, or an accident.

Much of the book discusses methods of easing conversation during visits, as well as ways to manage the emotions that can surface in difficult times. From asking open-ended questions like, "How did your day go?" to gently reintroducing yourself to lifelong friends, the pointers here are written with kindness, and they focus on maintaining dignity for all involved. Short sections include tips on involving children in your visits and a welcome list of resources that spans organizations, Web sites, and additional books; this straightforward advice even includes expected response time to Web site inquiries. Instead of an index, you'll find a list of topics, so you can find immediate answers on "ending a conversation" and "when to insist."

One lengthy chapter covers the heartbreakers, such as dealing with refusals to eat or listening to tearful requests to be taken home. Author Claudia Strauss acknowledges the difficulty of these situations honestly, while at the same time providing simple words that can help diffuse the issues and open the path for joyful visits that benefit everyone involved. --Jill Lightner

This edition includes the latest information on Alzheimer’s risk factors, treatments, and prevention, as well as a new chapter, “Voices of Experience,” composed of reflections by family members. It also provides information about new drugs approved since 1999 and the federal government’s decision to cover counseling and other health-related services through Medicare.

Inside Alzheimer's: How to Hear and Honor Connections with a Person who has Dementia We have long underestimated the person who has dementia. Each one's ability to reach out in familiar ways certainly diminishes yet he or she is always able to experience the deep benefits that come from being in vital relationship with others. Inside Alzheimer's tells how dozens of persons with dementia and their sharing of wisdom, humor and life's teachings led Ms. Pearce to the six basic principles of connection--how one person connects with another: Intend a connection, Free yourself of judgment, Love, Open to receive love, Silence and Thankfulness. Internalizing these principles has empowered hundreds of family, friends, and professionals to create moments of connection with persons, regardless of how advanced the dementia.

Four million Americans currently suffer from Alzheimer's disease and experts estimate that 22 million people around the world will be so afflicted by 2025. Far too many families are struggling with the emotionally and physically draining responsibility of redefining their relationship with, and caring for, someone who not long ago was a vibrant member of society, yet may not know their own name today.

A Dignified Life helps combat the burnout and frustration that often accompany the task of caring for an Alzheimer's patient. Author David Troxel, an Alzheimer's expert and executive director of the California Central Coast Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association, maintains that at its simplest this approach is based on treating the person like a best friend and working from their strengths, not their weaknesses. He explains: "As family members, caregivers and professionals, we have to try to connect with them. People with this disease in some way need someone to be . . . attentive and empathetic--someone who really tries to walk a mile in their shoes."

A Dignified Life goes beyond the typical tips offered by most books and takes advantage of readers' instinctive desire to build friendships and taps into the intuitive aspect of caregiving that is part of our very nature. It provides a complete model for care built around creative and effective communication and meaningful activities and includes touching stories that demonstrate how the Best Friends method continues to improve the lives of both those who have Alzheimer's disease and those who care for them.

Elder Rage, or Take My Father... Please!: How to Survive Caring for Aging Parents A riveting, often humorous, non-fiction novel that chronicles Jacqueline Marcell's trials and tribulations, and eventual success at managing the care of her aging parents. Elder Rage is also an extensive self-help book with solutions for effective management, medically and behaviorally, of challenging elders who resist care. Includes answers to difficult "how to" questions like: getting obstinate elders to give up driving, accept a caregiver, see a different doctor, go to adult day care, move to a new residence--and includes a wealth of valuable resources, websites and recommended reading. The addendum by renowned dementia specialist, Rodman Shankle, MS MD: A Physician's Guide to Treating Dementia, makes it valuable for everyone from the family to the physician. Elder Rage is required reading at several universities for graduate courses in geriatric assessment and management.

"The book is a message of hope and reassurance for laymen, especially aging members of the baby-boom generation alarmed by all the attention being paid to Alzheimer's and imagining worst-case scenarios for themselves."

Dr. Majid Fotuhi, one of the world's foremost experts in the field of Alzheimer's Disease and brain function, outlines a highly effective plan to guard against memory loss.

The Oxygen Revolution: Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy: The Groundbreaking New Treatment for Stroke, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Arthritis, Autism, Learning Disabilities and More HOPE FOR MANY "HOPELESS" DISEASES, FROM ONE OF THE FOREMOST RESEARCHERS IN THE FIELD

When Randy McCloy, Jr., the sole survivor of the Sago Mine disaster, finally walked out of the hospital to rejoin his family, it was in part due to the miracle of hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) is based on an almost laughably simple idea: Oxygen can be used therapeutically for a wide range of conditions where tissues have been damaged by oxygen deprivation. Restore that oxygen, goes the logical thinking, and you can restore much of the lost function. It seems too good to be true, but Dr. Paul G. Harch’s research and clinical practice has shown that this noninvasive and painless treatment can help the tens of millions of Americans who suffer from a brain injury or disease, such as:

• Stroke
• Autism and other learning disabilities
• Cerebral palsy and other birth injuries
• Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, multiple sclerosis, and other degenerative neurological diseases
• Emergency situations requiring resuscitation, such as cardiac arrest, carbon monoxide poisoning, or near drowning

It can also improve conditions in which inflammation is the culprit, such as arthritis and asthma; promote healing in infections, burns, and skin grafts, such as diabetic foot wounds; and slow the aging process.

For the millions of Americans suffering from these seemingly “hopeless” diseases, here finally is the handbook of hope. Inspiring and informative,
The Oxygen Revolution is the definitive guide to the miracle of hyperbaric oxygen therapy, from a pioneer in the field.

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