Category Archives: Caregiving – Dementia

Ten warning signs of caregiver stress

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Ten warning signs of caregiver stress

This webpage from BrightFocus Foundation (brightfocus.org), an organization addressing Alzheimer’s Disease, has a list of ten warning signs of caregiver stress:
* Denial
* Anxiety
* Depression
* Irritability
* Anger
* Poor concentration
* Withdrawal
* Sleep problems
* Exhaustion
* Illness

How many do you have?!

Robin

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www.brightfocus.org/alzheimers/article/learn-warning-signs-caregiver-stress

Tips & How-Tos
Learn the Warning Signs of Caregiver Stress
Thursday, June 18, 2015
BrightFocus Foundation

Caring for someone with Alzheimer’s disease is an enormous responsibility. Learn how you can watch for the warning signs of caregiver stress and what you can do to help cope with being a caregiver.

There’s an estimated of 60-70 percent of people with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of Dementia who are cared for in their homes, often by loved ones who are not medically trained. It’s no wonder that caregivers of people with Alzheimer’s disease suffer high levels of stress.

As the disease progresses, your caregiving efforts will require ongoing vigilance and around-the-clock monitoring. You may be called upon to adapt to changes in the person you are caring for and develop new skills to shoulder an increasing amount of responsibility. If your caregiving efforts are surpassing your ability to cope well, it may be because of stress.

What Are the Warning Signs of Stress
Here are some warning signs of stress that a caregiver may experience:
* Denial: Maintaining a belief that the care receiver’s illness is not serious or that it may not even exist.
* Anxiety: Worrying excessively about the future.
* Depression: Feeling hopeless or powerless about the situation.
* Irritability: Blowing up over little things.
* Anger: Feeling angry at inappropriate times.
* Poor concentration: Having difficulty focusing.
* Withdrawal: Feeling alienated from other people and from activities that used to bring enjoyment.
* Sleep problems: Sleeping poorly or too much.
* Exhaustion: Feeling chronically tired.
* Illness: Experiencing health problems. Prolonged stress also can contribute to illnesses such as weakened immune systems, high-blood pressure, and heart disease.

This content was last updated on: Thursday, June 18, 2015

“Caregiver Stress and Burnout: Tips for Regaining Your Energy, Optimism, and Hope”

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“Caregiver Stress and Burnout: Tips for Regaining Your Energy, Optimism, and Hope”

HelpGuide.org is a Southern California-based non-profit focused on mental, emotional, and social health.  Back in 2012, they published a webpage on “Caregiver Stress and Burnout,” which was recently updated.

The webpage, part of their articles about stress, offers this advice:

“Don’t let caregiving take over your whole life. It’s easier to accept a difficult situation when there are other areas of your life that are rewarding. Invest in things that give you meaning and purpose—whether it’s your family, church, a favorite hobby, or your career.”

Check out all of their advice here:

www.helpguide.org/articles/stress/caregiving-stress-and-burnout.htm

Caregiver Stress and Burnout
Tips for Regaining Your Energy, Optimism, and Hope
HelpGuide.org
Last Updated April 2017

Robin

 

“Why Many People Abandon Friends and Family” (Wall Street Journal)

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“Why Many People Abandon Friends and Family” (Wall Street Journal)

Though this article is titled “Why Many People Abandon Friends and Family with Dementia–and Shouldn’t,” I think the concepts apply to those with any neurological disorder, not just dementia. Many with neurological disorders are abandoned by their friends and family.  (Or maybe I should say they are abandoned by their supposed friends and family.)

This blog post from a recent Wall Street Journal (wsj.com) is authored by Marc Agronin, MD, a geriatric psychiatrist in Miami.  He says that there’s “a lot that can be done to break negative and avoidant behaviors that impede the care and quality of life for individuals with various forms of dementia.”

Dr. Agronin suggests five basic strategies “to banish the fear and avoidance of individuals with dementia and their caregivers.”  These approaches “can make all the difference by helping them to have greater dignity, well-being and quality of life.”  The five strategies include:

1. Educate yourself about this disease.
2. Recognize the strengths that still exist.
3. Lend a hand [to the person with a disorder and their caregiver].
4. Offer some relief [to the caregiver].
5. Become an advocate for…disease awareness, early detection and research.

Here’s a link to the full article:

blogs.wsj.com/experts/2017/04/23/why-many-people-abandon-friends-and-family-with-dementia-and-shouldnt/

The Experts/Retirement
Why Many People Abandon Friends and Family with Dementia–and Shouldn’t
By Marc Agronin
Apr 23, 2017 10:01 pm ET
Wall Street Journal

Robin

 

Six tips on coping with inappropriate dementia behavior; saying “I’m sorry”

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Six tips on coping with inappropriate dementia behavior; saying “I’m sorry”

The Capital Gazette newspaper has a column written by Mary Chaput of the Department of Aging and Disabilities of Annapolis, MD.  A recent column had a question about frontotemporal dementia.  Ms. Chaput’s answer applies to dealing with someone with any type of dementia.

In terms of dealing with inappropriate behavior, she offers six tips:

* Don’t take the behavior or comments personally.
* Be empathetic.
* Don’t argue.
* Look for the situation(s) and environmental factors that trigger the behaviors.
* Talk with your family member’s physician about the behavior.
* Keep in mind that this, too, shall pass.

Another question was about saying “I’m sorry” to placate someone with dementia.

Here’s a link to the full column:

www.capitalgazette.com/lifestyle/ph-ac-cc-caregivers-0402-20170401-story.html

Caregivers Corner: Be patient and empathetic when dealing with frontotemporal dementia
by Mary Chaput, Correspondent
Capital Gazette
April 1, 2017

Robin

 

“Dementia caregivers: Learning to live in your loved one’s reality” (Philadelphia Inquirer)

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This Philadelphia Inquirer article is a report on an Alzheimer’s caregiver conference in Valley Forge.  The keynote speaker was Tam Cummings, a gerontologist from Texas.  Ms. Cummings and other speakers made several points:

* “Cummings urged family members to ask their doctors more questions — as many questions as they might ask if the diagnosis were cancer.  Knowing more, she said, may help them understand and cope with the memory lapses, confusion, delusions, falls, depression, and stubbornness that often accompany dementia.”

* “A recurring theme: People with dementia have brain damage that limits what they can do and how they can think.  It’s those around them who have to change. … If people with dementia are being obstinate or aggressive, it’s up to caregivers to try to figure out whether there is an explanation that their loved one can no longer communicate: Are they in pain? Are they afraid? Were the instructions too complicated? Have perceptual changes made the environment look dangerous to them?”

* “Cummings told the crowd that ‘your loved one’s reality is your reality.'”

This short article is worth reading.  Here’s a link to it:

www.philly.com/philly/health/Dementia-caregivers-Learning-to-live-in-your-loved-ones-reality-alzheimers-association.html

Dementia caregivers: Learning to live in your loved one’s reality
Updated: April 26, 2017 — 3:01 am EDT
by Stacey Burling, Staff Writer
Philadelphia Inquirer

Robin