Well, the fat book has been auctioned off and it didn’t raise much money, but it was still a success. First, I added a bit of my own money to the donation to make it more substantial. Then, a few other people heard about the fundraiser and it encouraged them to make donations. Finally, the people who participated in the fat book swap really got a lot out of it and I gave a copy to the family member who made me think of the whole thing to start with. He appreciated it so much that it was worth it just for that.
According to this ACTIVE study:
“This large trial found that community-dwelling seniors who received cognitive training had less of a decline in certain thinking skills than their peers who did not have training. The study addresses a very important hypothesis — that interventions can be designed to maintain cognitive function,†says NIA Director Richard J. Hodes, M.D. “The challenge now is to further examine these interventions and others to see how they can be employed in real-world settings.â€
With findings like these, exercising our brains becomes very important. While brain exercises don’t stop dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, the study does show that they slow the progress of the diseases. So, how do we exercise our brains?
- Do logic, crossword and Sudoku puzzles - Just be sure you solve increasingly difficult puzzles as the years pass so you continue to challenge your brain.
- Play chess or checkers.
- Start a new hobby - exploring new hobbies often means learning new terminology, performing new tasks, etc.
- Send the kids (or grandkids) outside and take over the video game controllers for awhile. Simple games like Duck Hunt or Super Mario Brothers make me work on my reflexes and involve a bit of simple puzzle solving.
- Memorize your grocery list, a poem or a Bible verse. Not having success? Take a class on memory skills and put those skills to use.
- Hang out with kids. Sometimes, I can “feel the burn” from stretching my brain to include all those new ideas and ways of looking at things they come up with in a day.
Do you have any ideas for exercising our brains? Please post your tips!
It seems like every time I turn on the news this month, there’s another story about someone with Alzheimer’s wandering off and getting lost. I don’t think microchipping people is the answer. Frankly, the thought of something electronic being inserted beneath my skin creeps me out. However, I do think we need to look into some ways to protect our loved ones from slipping out of the house and getting hurt or lost.
When someone lives near the water, on a steep hill, or right beside a busy highway, the risk of injury for an Alzheimer’s patient gets much higher. Even our best efforts aren’t always enough, especially after we lock the doors for the night, get into bed and fall asleep. If we don’t hear our loved ones getting up, unlocking the door and leaving the house, they can be missing for eight hours or more before their disappearance is discovered. A few tips for keeping them from reaching and opening the front door without awakening you:
- Put a baby monitor in the Alzheimer’s patient’s room. The noises he or she makes getting up and leaving the room will probably awaken you.
- Use an alarm system on your house. It doesn’t have to necessarily plug into emergency services. It just has to go off if someone opens a door that shouldn’t be opening in the middle of the night.
- Use additional security measures, such as childproof locks and back up alarms on doors leading to potential hazard areas, such as the pool.
Finally, consider buying one of the new GPS tracking units. They are small enough to tuck into a pocket and last for five to seven days before they need to be recharged and I’ve seen some nice ones for under $250. Make sure the Alzheimer’s patient is wearing a GPS unit before you go out and if he or she does slip away for a stroll, you will be able to discover the location in minutes.
Someone in your family is acting forgetful and confused. That means Alzheimer’s, right? Not always. In fact, more than one of my friends has had a parent with symptoms that pointed towards Alzheimer’s that were solved by a good dose of a vitamin they had a deficiency in.
Here are the Signs of Alzheimer’s from the Alzheimer’s Association website.
1. Memory loss
2. Difficulty performing familiar tasks
3. Problems with language
4. Disorientation to time and place
5. Poor or decreased judgment
6. Problems with abstract thinking
7. Misplacing things
8. Changes in mood or behavior
9. Changes in personality
10. Loss of initiative
I am very big on rubber stamping, collage and other crafty pursuits. I started thinking that with the proposed Alzheimer’s research budget cut, there should be a way for us to use our artistic ability to raise money for Alzheimer’s research. I’m thinking something like a swap with everyone sending in an extra item so I can make a collection to auction off on eBay, too.
For example, if we did a charm bracelet swap, you’d send in 21 charms and receive 20 different charms back. The extra charms would be put on a bracelet and put on eBay. Other options would be a fat book swap with 20/21 pages or a 20/21 Artist Trading Card swap where I’d create a book with pockets for each of the extra ATCs to be auctioned as an ACEO card collection and holder.
Would anyone be interested in this? If so, please sign up to the Stamp Out Alzheimer’s Yahoo Group I’ve created to keep track of things and participate in the poll so I know which art form is the most popular.
The first swap theme will be a fat book on Cherished Memories- something that reminds you of a special day or person.
For up-to-date Alzheimer’s drug information the Mayo Clinic has good references on new drugs.
I received an email from the Alzheimer’s Association today. Bush has sent his proposed budget to Congress and it includes a big cut in funding for Alzheimer’s Research. Please ask your representatives to vote against cutting research. You can send a virtual letter asking for them to support Alzheimer’s research here. If you’re in the area, you can visit Capital Hill on March 20, 2007 to ask your representatives in person to keep funding research.
Richard Taylor has written a wonderful article on getting family members with Alzheimer’s to stop driving. One of the most important points he makes is that you should prepare for this moment well in advance.
I know that we were surprised by William’s sudden inability to drive safely and were unprepared for the power struggle over the keys. Although he had a caregiver who would take him anywhere he wanted to go during the day and a son to take him where he wanted to go at night, he would still steal the keys and try to drive off with the car.
Despite the fact that we did try sitting down one on one, explained consequences of unsafe driving and had alternate transportation set up, he felt stripped of power and angry. However, these suggestions for helping the Alzheimer’s victim hang up the car keys for good do work for many people.
It’s so easy to think that we should get the new high definition cable box, the new stovetop that can only be washed with a special cleanser and a soft cloth, or that sleek new microwave. However, these new and improved household appliances can be hard for people without Alzheimer’s to figure out. For someone with Alzheimer’s, it can be downright impossible, so don’t be surprised if Mom washes your new stove with her trusty cleaner and a scouring pad even if you explained everything to her.
Honestly, if you can avoid buying the newest and best gadgets, at least for the areas your loved one with Alzheimer’s is using, it is really a good idea. Moving to a new home can increase an Alzheimer’s patient’s confusion and having something in his or her current home change can do the same thing.
2006 has been an eventful year for the Alzheimer’s research community. They have made some tremendous strides and are so close to putting the puzzle pieces together. As 2006 draws to a close, I know we all hope that 2007 will be remembered as the year that a cure for this devastating disease was discovered.
Now a look at the advances from 2006:
We started off January with a bang, as researchers reported that memantine could help patients with advanced Alzheimer’s.
In February, we heard that genes play a part in Alzheimer’s development, but environment can also affect the onset of the disease.
March roared in with a report that blood pressure medication could lower the risk of Alzheimer’s and left us with a heated debate over the use of Aricept.
In July, we heard that heart and diabetes problems could be linked to Alzheimer’s disease.
Pretty good for one year, huh? And this doesn’t include all of the legal wrangling that resulted in a renewal of OAA and prescription coverage for Alzheimer’s medications.
By the way, if you are interested in reading other people’s reviews and predictions for almost any topic imaginable, you’ll want to check out ProBlogger’s Group Writing Project.
For the best in Alzheimer’s care and for any of your in home health care needs go to Comfort Keepers.
According to a study published in the Journal of Feline Medicine, you aren’t the only one with a chance of developing Alzheimer’s. Cats can also develop mental deterioration when they develop a protein build up in nerve cells. This is actually good news for Alzheimer’s victims, since scientists studying animal diseases may have a breakthrough that will help cure Alzheimer’s more quickly.
