4 Signs That Your Elderly Parent Needs a Caregiver to Help Them

 

The job of a parent is to take care of their children while they are young, and it’s the job of their children to take care of them when they grow unable to care for themselves.

The problem with this logic is that many children with elderly parents or relatives tend to have full-time jobs and other situations that make them unable to act as caregivers around the clock.

Below are four signs that you should enlist the help of a professional to better take care of and meet the needs of an elderly loved one.

 

1. Your Loved One Wanders

As people age, dementia tends to arise in one form or another. While it may not be as severe as Alzheimer’s disease, it can still lead to something referred to as “wandering”.

Wandering occurs when your loved one wanders off. They may get confused, or they may be reminiscing about older memories. This can leave them lost and in situations that may result in physical harm.

 

2. Your Loved One Sustains Injuries

The most startling thing that anyone can encounter is an open wound on their loved one that they did not notice. These types of injuries are all too common for elderly individuals, as they may not notice or feel the injury until some time later.

The best way to prevent these injuries from becoming life-threatening is to use an in-home care professional. Senior care professionals are trained in first-aid and can provide services such as physical therapy to ensure your loved one stays healthy.

 

3. Your Loved One Experiences Sundown Syndrome

Sundown syndrome is a term that expresses an increased amount of agitation or confusion most commonly seen as dusk approaches. It stems from dementia or another cognitive impairment, both of which are common to elderly individuals. It can result in everything from simple arguments to vision impairment that can potentially lead to accidents.

 

4. Your Loved One Needs Additional Care

If you find yourself being unable to render the kind of care that your loved one needs, or your loved one is incapable of taking care of themselves, then it’s time to seek additional help. They may otherwise face situations where their own problems will become worse as time progresses because they cannot help themselves like they would in their younger years.

 

Caregivers Help Your Elderly Loved One

It’s impossible to always be there for your elderly loved one when you have your own life filled with your own obligations. A caregiver can give you freedom while ensuring that your loved one still has as much freedom as possible while staying free from harm’s way.

 

Categories: alzheimers, Caregiver, Dementia, elderly, senior care, senior wellness, sundown syndrome, wandering

If Your Parent is Doing These 4 Things, They May Need Assisted Living

 

Over 15 million Americans unselfishly devote their time and energy in order to care for their elderly parent or loved one with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease according to experts. However, the expense of continuous caregiving can get very high. Often, caregivers find themselves no longer able to adequately bear the tremendous burden of providing health care at home without significantly suffering from illness and stress themselves.

 

At this point, it’s likely time to face the fact that their parent indeed may be ready for some sort of assisted living if their needs are too hard to deal with at home. Here are four key signs that indicate your elderly parent may need the help of assisted living.

 

1. Sundowning

Sundowner syndrome refers to an agitated behavior that increases as the sun goes down later in the day. It’s a common trait among people with Alzheimer’s. Doctors say that it can be overwhelming on caregivers, and that once it starts to seriously disrupt family lifestyles and routines, it may be a big clue that the burden of caregiving is too difficult to deal with.

Physical, verbal, and even sexually-driven aggression often occurs in people suffering with dementia, which in turn can make caregivers and family members start to feel somewhat overwhelmed and even resentful. When the elderly parent reaches that unfortunate state, it’s probably time to consider assisted living placement in a location like Alpine Manor Home for Adults.

 

2. Wandering

In the later stages of dementia, the dangerous risk that wandering poses greatly increases according to clinical experts. In fact, they can even start to wander away in the little time it takes for the caregiver to use the bathroom, which increases the likelihood of injuries and falls.

 

3. Caregiver Stress

How stressed out the caregiver becomes along with other symptoms such as extreme fatigue can be just as big a sign that it may be time for extra help as the parent’s dementia-based behavior itself. As a caregiver, are you constantly worried and stressed out 24/7? Have you sacrificed your mind, body, and spirit to care for your elderly parent? As noble as a caregiver’s job is, reaching the point of utter despair, resentment, and physical exhaustion will help no one in the end.

 

4. Home Stress Issues and Increasing Care Needs

Is the parent with dementia becoming increasingly unsafe in their own home? Is their health or the health of the caregiver at risk? If the answer is ‘yes’ to either of these questions, placement may necessary.

 

While no one ever wants to move out of their home and into assisted living, in some cases it may be the safest and best possible solution available. If you do decide to place your elderly parent into an assisted living program, thoroughly look at the housing situation along with their current medical needs and overall health status to make the most-informed choice.

 

Categories: alzheimers, assisted living, caregiver stress, caregiving, Dementia, senior care, sundowner syndrome, wandering

Behind Alzheimer"s: The Latest in Disease Research

 

 

Alzheimer’s disease was named after Dr. Alois Alzheimer. It was originally called presenile dementia when first discovered in 1901. A female patient of Dr. Alzheimer’s had developed unusual short term memory loss. After she died in 1906, Alzheimer gave her brain to his colleague Emil Kraepelin to study. He found plaque and tangles in her brain. In 1910, Kraepelin renamed the disease Alzheimer’s. 5.1 million people currently suffer from this disease. Research for Alzheimer’s is in prevention, or lowering the odds and drug trials.

 

 

Prevention

In France and Canada, researchers looked at 1800 patients over age 66 who were diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and were prescribed benzodiazepines. There were findings that benzodiazepines, which include Xanax and Valium taken over a three to six year period, had an increased 51 percent chance of getting Alzheimer’s compared to 7,000 healthy adults.

Increasing Vitamin D levels, particularly if you are 65 or over, can lower the risk of getting Alzheimer’s. If you are under 65 to 70, you will need 600 units of Vitamin D. If you are over 70, you will need 800 units of Vitamin D. Keeping your blood pressure in check, a healthy diet, plenty of sleep, and regular exercise can help lower the chances of getting Alzheimer’s. Unfortunately, there is no magic potion that will absolutely prevent the disease, but doctors and scientists are working on it.

 

 

Research

Research in Alzheimer’s has been growing by leaps and bounds since the 1980′s, unfortunately it is incurable at the moment. Biomarkers is a blood test being used on healthy adults to see if they could get the disease in the next few years. Until there is something that can cure Alzheimer’s there are drugs available to manage and slow the progression of the disease. These drugs improve cognitive and behavior symptoms. Researchers and graduates with aging master’s degrees know people who are diagnosed with the disease today, may have had it for twenty years. The neurons that have since died, cannot be brought back to life.

 

 

Tomorrow Study

Seventeen states are going to be involved in a study called TomorrowStudy.com that will study the mild forms of Alzheimer’s. People age 65 to 83 in good health are eligible. It will take place in fifty centers throughout North America, Europe, and Australia. The Alzheimer’s Association is also running a study. It’s called Trial Match and it is available through the Alz.org website.

 

 

Researchers are not done trying to find a cure, and might just find the answer soon. We need to keep hope alive and do all we can to prevent this devastating disease.

 

Categories: alzheimers, Disease, latest, Research

Behind Alzheimer"s: The Latest in Disease Research

 

 

Alzheimer’s disease was named after Dr. Alois Alzheimer. It was originally called presenile dementia when first discovered in 1901. A female patient of Dr. Alzheimer’s had developed unusual short term memory loss. After she died in 1906, Alzheimer gave her brain to his colleague Emil Kraepelin to study. He found plaque and tangles in her brain. In 1910, Kraepelin renamed the disease Alzheimer’s. 5.1 million people currently suffer from this disease. Research for Alzheimer’s is in prevention, or lowering the odds and drug trials.

 

 

Prevention

In France and Canada, researchers looked at 1800 patients over age 66 who were diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and were prescribed benzodiazepines. There were findings that benzodiazepines, which include Xanax and Valium taken over a three to six year period, had an increased 51 percent chance of getting Alzheimer’s compared to 7,000 healthy adults.

Increasing Vitamin D levels, particularly if you are 65 or over, can lower the risk of getting Alzheimer’s. If you are under 65 to 70, you will need 600 units of Vitamin D. If you are over 70, you will need 800 units of Vitamin D. Keeping your blood pressure in check, a healthy diet, plenty of sleep, and regular exercise can help lower the chances of getting Alzheimer’s. Unfortunately, there is no magic potion that will absolutely prevent the disease, but doctors and scientists are working on it.

 

 

Research

Research in Alzheimer’s has been growing by leaps and bounds since the 1980′s, unfortunately it is incurable at the moment. Biomarkers is a blood test being used on healthy adults to see if they could get the disease in the next few years. Until there is something that can cure Alzheimer’s there are drugs available to manage and slow the progression of the disease. These drugs improve cognitive and behavior symptoms. Researchers and aging master’s know that people who are diagnosed with the disease today, may have had it for twenty years. The neurons that have since died, cannot be brought back to life.

 

 

Tomorrow Study

Seventeen states are going to be involved in a study called TomorrowStudy.com that will study the mild forms of Alzheimer’s. People age 65 to 83 in good health are eligible. It will take place in fifty centers throughout North America, Europe, and Australia. The Alzheimer’s Association is also running a study. It’s called Trial Match and it is available through the Alz.org website.

 

 

Researchers are not done trying to find a cure, and might just find the answer soon. We need to keep hope alive and do all we can to prevent this devastating disease.

 

Categories: alzheimers, disease research, latest

Four Great Exercises Proven to Help Prevent Alzheimer"s

Alzheimer’s disease is a frightening affliction of the mind that is not yet fully understood. It can be a dangerous illness, as Alzheimer’s patients try to navigate their world with a changing mind. Fortunately, there are some ways you can reduce the risk or magnitude of Alzheimer’s disease by taking certain preventative measures. Exercises, both mental and physical, can delay the onset of Alzheimer’s. These are four exercises you can use to keep your brain alert:

 

1. Puzzles

Puzzle games like crosswords, Sudoku, and jigsaw puzzles, help keep the brain alert. Not only are they challenging and fun, they’re excellent for keeping the mind occupied when you have extra free time. Keep a puzzle book with you when you’re in line at the DMV, the doctor’s office, or anytime you have a spare moment or two. Switch up the puzzle types for the best brain workout.

 

2. Memory Games and Trivia

These work especially well if you have friends you can play with on game night. Keep your mind sharp with board games that combine trivia with wordplay, drawings, and charades. Sarah Blige, a memory care specialist with Osprey Lodge, recommends playing with a group, as this pushes your mind to adapt to the clues and strategies of those you play with and provides an extra level of mental stimulation while you participate.

 

3. Current Events

It may seem odd, but staying on top of current events in the world around you is another great way to stay alert. Even tuning into public access radio helps keep you thinking clearly, and it certainly isn’t any worse than hearing the same Top 40 song for the third time in an hour. If you can, subscribe to a newsletter that will give you condensed versions of important current events in politics, entertainment, and your local area.

 

4. Combining Mental and Physical Exercises

Physical exercise has been shown to both delay the onset of Alzheimer’s and reduce its chance of developing. When you keep your body physically fit and healthy, your brain, which is an organ that needs training just as your heart or lungs, will stay healthy as well. Try to mix up cardiovascular and strength training exercises, combining physical exercise with mentally stimulating activities like archery, tennis, or hiking.

 

Alzheimer’s disease can be scary, but it is also preventable to a degree. Staying active using puzzles, games, and other engaging activities is a great way to reduce your risk. With regular activities like these, you can reduce the risk of developing severe Alzheimer’s and prevent its early onset.

Categories: alzheimer, alzheimers, brain alert, current events, exercises, mind, nbsp, physical, physical exercise, prevent

Stuck In the Past: Caring For Those With Alzheimers

Helping a loved one who has contracted Alzheimer’s disease can be a difficult and emotionally draining experience. However, there are several techniques that you can utilize to help reduce the strain on everyone involved. As an added bonus, some of these techniques can even help the Alzheimer’s patient improve their quality of life and retain some of their most important memories for longer.

 

 

Top Tips for Alzheimer’s Care

 

1. Be Careful When Creating a Schedule – It is imperative to help an Alzheimer’s patient by developing a daily routine to reduce their level of confusion. For example, it is a good idea to schedule their meals at the same time each day. Additionally, it is likely that there will be certain times of the day when they tend to be in a calmer state. Once you have determined when these times are, you can use it to your advantage to schedule any necessary medical appointments and other difficult tasks.

 

2. Help Your Loved One Stay Involved – Many Alzheimer’s caregivers are tempted to simply take care of everything instead of involving their loved one. After all, this removes the necessity of getting the patient to cooperate with the task at hand. However, keeping them involved in almost every aspect of their daily life can actually help them with their memory and self-esteem.

 

3. Consider Moving Them into an Assisted Living Facility – Alzheimer’s disease is a heartbreaking condition that can be emotionally devastating for the patient’s family members. Additionally, many home caregivers are not properly equipped to meet all of the patient’s needs. Therefore, it is important to consider moving your loved one into an assisted living facility that specializes in Alzheimer’s care. Chateau Vestavia, an assisted living community in Alabama, offers a life enrichment program called Memory Care for residents who suffer from Alzheimers.

 

4. Remove Unnecessary Distractions – It can be extremely difficult for an Alzheimer’s patient to focus during conversations, mealtime and other essential components of their day if there is background noise or other unnecessary distractions. For example, you should never leave the TV on if you are attempting to have a conversation with your loved one.

 

5. Patience Is Key – It is understandable that dealing with a loved one who has Alzheimer’s disease can be stressful, but you should never allow yourself to lose your patience with them. Doing so would only confuse them, and it could also cause them to feel so stressed out that they no longer feel comfortable with you around. Therefore, if you feel like it is possible that you will lash out at them, you should temporarily remove yourself from the situation.

 

In most cases, it makes sense for an Alzheimer’s patient to move into an assisted living facility. After all, these communities offer a high level of specialized care that can help improve the quality of their life. Additionally, it will help remove your burden of being a personal caregiver, and this will enable you to focus your attention solely on having good experiences with your loved one. This can make the process of dealing with Alzheimer’s easier for everyone involved, and it can also help assuage any feelings of guilt you have that are associated with caring for them at home.

Writer Melanie Fleury has a grandmother-in-law that suffers from Alzheimer’s. She sees the heartbreak on the faces of her children when their great grandmother does not recognize them. Chateau Vestavia “embraces what science has proven effective in the fight against Alzheimer’s and Dementia”. The website of the Chateau was used to learn more about caring for those with memory conditions.

Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/see-through-the-eye-of-g/8368764205/

Categories: alzheimer, alzheimers, care, Caring, chateau vestavia, involved, living facility, nbsp, past, patient, unnecessary distractions

What’s The Difference Between Forgetfulness And Dementia?

As you get older, one of the biggest threats to your mental/emotional health is memory loss. It can be difficult, however, to work out whether what you are experiencing is the dementia associated with Alzheimer’s disease, or whether it is the normal decline in cognitive wellness and wellbeing leading to age-related memory loss.

 

Forgetfulness is a normal part of the ageing process, but severe memory loss is not something that should be ignored, as it can be linked to more serious conditions. To use an example, forgetting where you have put your watch is a normal thing that can happen to most of us, but if you find you have forgotten how to tell the time, this is a more serious thing altogether. If you are forgetting major events or chunks of memorised information or abilities, there is a good chance that you could be suffering from dementia, caused by Alzheimer’s disease.

 

For World Alzheimer’s Day this year, the theme is ‘faces’ and the ideas is to emphasise to people that there are normal people behind every dementia patient. This is to help people understand a bit more about the disease, and understand that it can affect anyone – their parents, aunties, cousins, friends, famous people and, of course, themselves.

 

Startling figures have shown that Alzheimer’s disease affects 35.6 million people worldwide. It is predicted that this figure will rise to 65.7 million people by the year 2030, and 115.4 million people by the time it gets to 2050. Another report shows that men are more prone to dementia than women.

 

People who suffer from Alzheimer’s often seem to live in a ‘world of their own’ and are not aware of what is going on around them. They can often not remember their own names, let alone where they live or even whether they have eaten that day.

Categories: alzheimer, alzheimers, Dementia, memory, memory loss, million people, people

Exercise Could be an Important Weapon Against Alzheimer’s

A new study published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Diseases has revealed that fitness could be the way to improve the wellness and well-being of Alzheimer’s patients, and stave off the debilitating disease for as long as possible.

 

Researchers based at the University of Maryland School of Public Health carried out the study, which showed that exercise could help improve brain function in those who are at risk of developing Alzheimer’s. It is thought that this exercise could help to improve the efficiency of the brain.

 

There were 17 participants involved in the study, and all of them were suffering from Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), which is another way to describe the early memory loss that is usually associated with the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. There were also 18 other people used in the study as the control subjects. Both of the groups were of a similar gender, age, education and genetic risk and they were all on the same or similar types and doses of medication.

 

All of the participants in the study had to take part in a 12 week programme of exercise, which consisted of walking every day on a treadmill at a moderate intensity setting, and were supervised by a personal trainer at all times.

 

All participants in the programme had to carry out a full memory test both before and after the 12 weeks of exercise. The first was a famous ‘name memory’ task and the second was a ‘list learning’ task that involved recalling words. Results showed that both the dementia and non-dementia group had improved fitness levels. The important result, however, showed that the fMRI tests that were taken before and after showed increased brain activity in patients with early onset dementia.

Categories: alzheimer, alzheimers, exercise, fitness, memory, nbsp, study

Research into Young Dementia Reflects Environment

Research performed by Bournemouth University has revealed that there has been a sharp rise in deaths due to dementia since the beginnings of the 21st Century; but now, the discovery has given leverage to the fact that the early onset of dementia cannot be passed off as being due to longer life spans.

Professor Colin Pritchard, who led the investigation, touched on the fact that that societal and environmental causes may be key to what he calls an “epidemic” of dementia.

The UK has one of the highest increases of neurological deaths from between 1979 to 2010 according to the World Health Organisation, which suggests a daunting implication on the living conditions of those living within its borders.

Prichard commented that ‘[This rise] cannot be genetic because the period is too short.

‘Whilst there will be some influence of more elderly people, it does not account for the earlier onset; the differences between countries nor the fact that more women have been affected, as their lives have changed more than men’s over the period.’

What the research uncovered was that the increase of early onsets of dementia increased in in men up 32 per cent and women up 48 per cent that represents a rise from 4,500 deaths to an uncomfortable 6,500. On a global scale, the risks of dementia have risen in 16 countries, of which Pritchard baptises as an “epidemic” of dementia.

His concerns stand alongside the fact that people are developing dementia at younger ages, of which he believes society and the environment that it is surrounded by is held accountable. The increased number of charities such as The Young Parkinson’s Society and Young Dementia UK are legacies to this statement.

‘These statistics are about real people and families, and we need to recognise that there is an ‘epidemic’ that clearly is influenced by environmental and societal changes.”

‘Considering the changes over the last 30 years – the explosion in electronic devices, rises in background non-ionising radiation – PCs, microwaves, TVs, mobile phones; road and air transport up four-fold increasing background petro-chemical pollution; chemical additives to food, etcetera,’ Professor Pritchard said.

‘There is no one factor rather the likely interaction between all these environmental triggers, reflecting changes in other conditions.’

Categories: alzheimers, Dementia, environment, Parkinsons

Could Taking HRT Stop You From Getting Alzheimer’s?

Millions of women could be protecting their mental health by taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT) according to a recent report.

Studies have been carried out on 63 women in the post-menopausal stage of life, all of whom were taking HRT. Their mental wellness and wellbeing was carefully assessed, particularly in relation to a genetic variant called APOE-e4 and also telomere length, which can be an indicator of cell ageing.

The gene APOE-e4 gene is liked to an increased risk of the carrier developing Alzheimer’s disease in later life, and there have also been studies which have indicated a link between the telomere length, and the cognitive decline associated with Alzheimer’s disease.

A relationship between the female hormone oestrogen, which drops sharply during the menopause, and the length of telomeres has been proposed. This particular study seems to back up the theory that telomere shortening is somehow linked to the APOE-e4 gene.

Tests showed that the post-menopausal participants in the study who were carriers of the gene had a much higher chance of having shorter telomeres. The study then proved that these women has less chance of the telomere length reducing if they stayed on an extended course of HRT, which replaces hormones. Conversely, women who were not carriers of the gene actually showed less reduction in the length of their telomeres if they stopped taking HRT.

Whilst previous studies have seemed to indicate that taking hormone replacement therapy does not prevent patients from developing Alzheimer’s, what this new study may indicate is that the efficacy of HRT is dependent on whether or not the patient carries a specific gene variant. This research was carried out at the University of California in the United States and was published in the journal PLOS ONE.

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Could Taking HRT Stop You From Getting Alzheimer’s?

Categories: alzheimers, hrt, oestrogen