When The Doctor Says "Alzheimer's"
Your Caregiver's Guide to Alzheimer's & Dementia
by
Book Cover & Preview Text
*DIAGNOSIS*
Alzheimer’s
is very elusive to diagnose. The most
common method is by trying to eliminate any other condition that may be causing
the symptoms. The diagnosis will likely
then be ‘Probable’ Alzheimer’s, which is correct about 85% of the time. A final accurate diagnosis can only be made
with a biopsy of brain tissue usually done at autopsy.
Occasional
memory loss, distractions, dumb decisions are not automatically signs of
Alzheimer’s...far from it...everyone does those things. But if your loved one’s memory loss is
affecting his work; if he gets confused doing familiar things; if others have
difficulty understanding him; if he is frequently confused about the day, time
and place; if he doesn’t know how he got someplace; if he is making inappropriate
decisions about everyday events; if he is unable to make pocket change, or work
with numbers he always understood before; if he puts things in inappropriate
places more than usual; if his moods and behavior become erratic; if his
personality changes dramatically; and if he has lost interest in doing the
things he normally does, then you might want him to see a doctor to determine
if it’s more than normal distraction and forgetfulness.
Dementia
is a symptom, not a disease in itself, the same way fever is a symptom of a
variety of medical conditions, but not a disease in itself. Everyone with Alzheimer’s has dementia, but
not everyone with dementia has Alzheimer’s.
It can come from dozens of other things such as a blow to the head,
being an alcoholic, allergies, reactions to
medications, depression and other diseases.
To
tell or not to tell a patient that he has Alzheimer’s is a very personal matter
and will often bitterly divide families. But it’s best left to the primary caregiver
to make that decision, based only on whatever makes the caregiver feel the most
comfortable, she’s the one who has to live with it 24/7. If the patient asks, “What’s the matter with
me?” it’s perfectly reasonable to say something like, “You’re having some
problems with your memory and the doctor is helping you with that.” Honestly is the best policy when you’re
talking about shoplifting, but honesty is not always the kindest thing you can
do, and Alzheimer’s patients need kindness more than honesty.
*DRIVING*
People
seem to think that if someone is sitting next to an Alzheimer’s driver he won’t
get lost so it’s OK, he can still drive, or he only drives around the
neighborhood where he’s familiar with everything. But someone in the passenger seat won’t keep
him from driving into a store front, off a parking structure, into people at a
bus stop, or into a swimming pool...you frequently see such ‘accidents’ by
elderly drivers on the news. Getting
lost is not the problem. People without
Alzheimer’s get lost every day. Being
able to operate the car is not a problem.
The very real danger is the inability to react quickly, to assess a
pending emergency without getting flustered, misreading the scene or being
unable to read or see a traffic sign; it’s going the wrong way on a one-way
street, misjudging distance and speed.
What will you do, sitting next to him, when he gets confused and turns
in front of a truck? It’s dangerous for
him to even back out of his own driveway.
And it isn’t only confusion; Alzheimer’s patients develop visual
problems that have nothing to do with eyeglasses.
Few
things will be more difficult than taking away your loved one’s car, but it is
imperative. If he gets into an accident,
even if it’s not his fault, the assets of the whole family can be wiped out,
even if he has insurance. Someone can be
killed or seriously injured.
You
can disable his car, but in a lucid moment, he will call the garage or auto
club, so you will have to tell the garage to say it can’t be fixed if he calls,
and ‘lose’ his club card. The car can
also be ‘stolen’. Tell him you reported
it to the police but it’s never been recovered.
If you have only one car and you need to drive it, let him keep his key
but file down one point enough so that the car won’t start. Or get a remote starter installed where they
sell auto alarms. You keep the remote
starter control on your key ring--your loved one need never know. Or trade the car in for another make. This will confuse him and he’ll likely let
you drive. Keep putting everything off
until ‘tomorrow’. Eventually, with the
car disabled or out of sight, most patients forget about driving. If it doesn’t cause too many problems, keep
the patient’s car around if it makes him happy.
Learn more about driving problems and solutions at:
The
http://www.thehartford.com/alzheimers
Ageless
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Book Details
About the Book
Although one in ten Americans over 65 has
Alzheimer’s, it remains one of the most hidden, misunderstood diseases the
world has ever known. Neither a cure,
nor technical medical advice, this handy book, written by a caregiver with over
ten years personal experience and research caring for her husband, has some of
the best first-hand advice you’ll ever come by. Because patients appear so normal, no one believes anything is
wrong. Even cognitive tests can’t show
the full extent of its devastation on the patient and the family. Although the stigma is lessening,
Alzheimer’s continues to be elusive, embarrassing and difficult to deal
with. When it sneaks into a family, few
know where to turn: What caused it?
Will I get it? He keeps falling.
He’s violent! Why isn’t there a cure?
The doctor doesn’t understand.
What’s an MRI, MMSE? How can the
caregiver survive? I feel so
guilty. Not every anguished question
has an answer as yet, but many of them do, and understanding how to deal with
much of it can be found in “When the Doctor Says, ‘Alzheimer’s’--”.
It’s a valuable must have, easy to understand finger-tip resource book
for anyone involved in this overwhelming, confusing disease.
About the Author
For over a decade, Betty Weiss was the sole 24/7 caregiver for her husband with Alzheimer’s. Naïve and in denial, she first believed she could live with a little forgetfulness. But as the disease pursued its relentless destruction of their lives, she began to research and develop a better understanding of its symptoms and how to react to them. She found far too much information scattered all over, often too technical and dismaying to be useful. As an occasional published writer, she has compiled her personal experience, philosophy and research into a comprehensive easy to understand book that gives Alzheimer’s caregivers instantly available suggestions to cope with the most common problems they face in this difficult and traumatic challenge.