Category Archives: Living with a Neurological Condition

“4 ways that older people can bolster or improve their mental health” – WaPo

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“4 ways that older people can bolster or improve their mental health” – WaPo

This interesting article in a recent Washington Post is written by a psychologist.

Excerpts:

 

The elderly who deal with significant physical problems or cognitive decline, who are lonely, or who are grieving or dealing with multiple losses are more likely to experience psychological problems, especially depression. So are older people who have a lot of regret about a life not well-lived and who struggle to find meaning in their lives.

 

Late life depression, in turn, has been found by researchers to increase self-neglect, cardiovascular problems, morbidity, and risk of suicide.  It also leads to worse social and cognitive functioning and compromised quality of life.

 

Among those living outside group settings, the rate of clinically significant depressive symptoms is 8 to 16 percent and anxiety disorders is 10 to 15 percent. The elderly living in nursing homes fare worse. Most older adults with depression and anxiety do not receive treatment for it.

The author suggests four approaches to bolster or improve mental health: 

  • life review
  • engage in meaningful activities
  • disengage from unattainable goals, and
  • deal with death anxiety.

This article may be behind a paywall.

4 ways that older people can bolster or improve their mental health
By Jelena Kecmanovic
Washington Post
November 6, 2021
Link

“Brain Donation” – poem by Diane (with PSP)

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“Brain Donation” – poem by Diane (with PSP)

We recently welcomed Diane Deaver to our local Northern California support group, which has virtual meetings for those with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP).  Her husband Doug has joined our meetings for local PSP caregivers.

Here’s a poem about brain donation that Diane recently shared.  If you’d like Brain Support Network’s assistance in arranging for your brain donation (or a family member’s brain donation), let us know!

Brain Donation

When I don’t need my brain anymore

(Which means that I’ll be dead)

Rather than have it cremated with me,

I’ll donate it to science instead.

If I can help some others

Diagnosed with PSP

to have a better future

that would mean the world to me.

If knowing what was in my brain

would help to find a cure

it would be a mighty contribution

That’s for sure.

 

©Diane Deaver
PSP Poet
June 2021

“Fear of Falling” – poem by Diane (with PSP)

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“Fear of Falling” – poem by Diane (with PSP)

We recently welcomed Diane Deaver to our local Northern California support group, which has virtual meetings for those with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP).  Her husband Doug has joined our meetings for local PSP caregivers.

Here’s a poem about falling that Diane recently shared.  We are posting this on the first day of fall!

 

FEAR OF FALLING

I live in fear of falling

Every minute, every day

With colored bruises everywhere

It’s a painful price to pay.

I like to count my blessings

Not a single broken bone

But I am used to falling

I cry and often moan.

The bruises fade, no longer show

But something deep inside

Does not recover so completely

I think it is my pride.

I live in fear of falling

Every minute, every day

It destroys all my self-confidence

It’s a mighty price to pay.

Diane Deaver
PSP Poet
©2021

Facebook’s Giving Tuesday match program – Help support our efforts at BSN (12/1/2020)

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Facebook’s Giving Tuesday match program – Help support our efforts at BSN (12/1/2020)
Brain Support Network is participating in Facebook’s Giving Tuesday match program, where $7 million of donations given through Facebook will be matched dollar-for-dollar, DECEMBER 1 ONLY. This match begins at 8am EST-5am PST) and will run until the matched funds run out. This means that if you donate to Brain Support Network through Facebook on December 1, your donation could be DOUBLED, but you must act quickly.

 
Brain Support Network focuses on three activities:
  1. Brain Donation. We promote and facilitate brain donation for most neurological disorders and healthy “controls.” At present, post-mortem brain tissue analysis is the *only* way to confirm a diagnosis of Lewy body dementia (LBD), Parkinson’s Disease (PD), Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD), Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), vascular dementia, Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP), Multiple System Atrophy (MSA), and Corticobasal Degeneration (CBD).
    Brain Support Network has helped over 800 families accomplish brain donation in the US. Of these families, *half* received a confirmed diagnosis that was different than the clinical diagnosis.
  2. We manage a local support group that focuses on the four atypical parkinsonian disorders (LBD, PSP, MSA, and CBD). We hold support group meetings for caregivers in Northern California, convening nine times per year in San Mateo, California.
  3. We track the research on the atypical parkinsonian disorders and maintain a website that refers to the best resources that we’ve found for caregivers. Our Facebook page posts lots of research on Parkinson’s Disease, Alzheimer’s Disease, Frontotemporal Dementia, and the atypical parkinsonian disorders. Plus we share worthwhile articles on caregiving for neurological disorders.

“Uncertainty fuels anxiety” (Washington Post)

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“Uncertainty fuels anxiety” (Washington Post)
The uncertainty many of us feel about the pandemic reminds me of the uncertainty many of us face in caregiving situations.  We don’t know what’s going to happen next.  According to this recent Washington Post article, uncertainty fuels anxiety and can leave us exhausted.
Here’s an interesting excerpt about being flexible in how you cope:
“[The] people who cope best with uncertainty are the ones who have a more flexible coping style.  … ‘Sometimes fixing the problem is good, sometimes being proactive is good, sometimes managing your emotions with self-care is good, and in some cases even avoidance can be fine.  But doing the same thing regardless of the situation is not going to work.  In uncontrollable situations, focusing on what you can control, like your reactions, will be best.'”
A few strategies are shared, including:
  • taking a day at a time
  • breaking down the problem into its component parts and try to find ways to deal with those specific parts
  • cognitive behavioral therapy
  • viewing uncertainty as a challenge, rather than as a threat

Health
Uncertainty fuels anxiety, causing your mind to conjure up scary scenarios. The pandemic can magnify the angst.
By Christie Aschwanden
Washington Post
September 12, 2020 at 7:00 a.m. PDT