Articles by Debbie Selsavage
Floridians understand how to prepare for seasonal bad weather, but for families living with dementia, hurricane season can present special challenges. Individuals living with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia do not have the benefit of memory, so they cannot reassure themselves from the knowledge that most tropical storms do little or no damage. For …
Continue reading “Hurricane season brings special challenges”
Many years ago, I told someone I had a problem, and she said, “No, you have an opportunity.” I thought this was just a silly platitude, but over the years, I began to understand what she meant. Every event has positive and negative aspects, and it is we who choose which way we are going …
When social distancing began in response to Covid-19, I, and other dementia practitioners, could no longer facilitate support groups for the care partners of individuals living with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. Previously, I had conducted two support groups per month, but these had to be canceled and hastily reorganized as virtual meetings through …
I often hear caregivers express anger, frustration, or sadness that their loved one living with dementia seems to be in another world. They may believe they are living in another time, or different place. They may forget your name or call you by the name of someone else they have known.
Our natural reaction is to correct a person with dementia when they say something that is wrong. This is what we do with children. We immediately correct them because this is how they learn.
Last year, the Citrus County Board of Commissioners took action to improve mental health services by retaining LifeStream, an organization that has provided treatment, education, care management, rehabilitation, and homeless services in Central Florida since 1971.
You would be surprised how often I hear from concerned caregivers for loved ones living with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia who have in their home open access to a firearm. Unfortunately, gun ownership is like so many aspects of living with dementia; we often don’t think much about it until we are confronted …
The most undeniable fact of life is that it will end. However, too often families and caregivers go to extraordinary lengths to avoid end-of-life planning until it is too late. I have already written about hospice and bereavement counseling as valuable services to caregivers coping with dementia. Another is Doula.
According to the American Association of Retired Persons, one in four over the age of 50 takes a brain supplement, despite the fact that they are likely only flushing their money down the drain! Why would we do this?
When we raised children, their safety was first and foremost. Later, when we are caring for a loved one with dementia, we may pay less attention to their safety because they are adults and they have had a lifetime of learning what is safe and what is not. But we must understand that dementia has …