Caring for a loved one with Alzheimer disease

As a family member of a love one with Alzheimer’s disease, it was hard for us to understand the whole illness but as time went on and we learned more about the condition, it wasn’t hard to understand.

It started back when I was still in school, we couldn’t understand why grandma would always forget where she was going. She would get lost and we would always worry about grandma’s whereabouts. So my grandpa finely gave the car away, since then she wasn’t able to drive anymore.

Grandma didn’t want to lose her driver license. For that was her independent. It was sad but we had to do it to keep her safe and we as family felt better knowing that grandma wouldn’t be out in the streets lost.

Then as time went by, we noticed more things about grandma that wasn’t right. I would go to her house as I always did and noticed that she was putting newspaper in the oven and turning on the stove. One day I went to grandma’s house and it was smoking. I thought for minutes that she had burnt something while she was cooking but I got to looking and I found the newspaper in the stove.

I asked grandma what she was tying to do and she couldn’t remember. I was scared at that point so I moved in next door to my grandparents. Living next doors, I could be there to watch her without her knowing what I was doing. The move was a big help.

I would go over there to visit. She didn’t know what I was really doing. It got harder everyday for us to see the illness was taking my grandma. We would always say she would get better but she never did.

Grandma didn’t like baths. We would have to give her a bath and she would just hate that. That was a hard day for us. No one wanted to give grandma a bath because she would act out so bad. But as we learned about all this, we found out that people with Alzheimer’s does not like any form of water. So we would then just wash her up and that was better for us. We then had peace when it was bath day.

We would let grandma go shopping for the home and she would go to the bathroom when we would leave. But she would always end up going in her pants. So we would have to go back home and change her. She couldn’t figure out what was wrong with her. It was hard for her as well because at that point she knew something was wrong but didn’t know what.

It got to the point that grandma would just lie around and sleep. It was too hard for us as family members to take care of grandma any more so we as family needed to have a talk and we thought it was best to put grandma in a nursing home where she could get all the help and care she needed around the clock.

It was the hardest thing we could have done as family members. Yet we knew we couldn’t do it anymore. Grandma was in the nursing home for about 12 years. We as family would see grandma slowly going into her own little world.

We would go get her and bring her home for the holidays, or just go get her and take her out for ice cream. We were always there for grandma. But it was hard as loved ones to deal with this illness. It finally took grandmas life about 2 years ago. We as family miss grandma but she in a better place now, we still remember her, and all the good and bad times we had. It is hard to take care of a loved one with this illness. It is hard to deal with it because we watched grandma go from a strong healthy grandma to a sick grandma.

Caring for a loved one with Alzheimer

Alzheimer’s disease can affect anyone more so in seniors 60 and over. Sometimes the family has to learn and change their life style in order to adjust and make your loved one comfortable. Be patient and just take things day by day. One day at a time is the moral behind this story, since all you can do is stay in control and help those you love.

In the beginning, Alzheimer’s disease can affect everyone in many different ways. Your loved one may slowly lose their memory, which as dementia progresses it may change the personality. The loved one may drift in and out of time by remembering long-term items and forgetting the short-term ones. This memory loss will and may affect the caregiver in different ways as well. The loved one may live in his or her home and at the same time not realizing where they are.

Driving somewhere can be a challenge to the person who has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. The short trip from their home to town that they may have drove a thousand times could take them three times longer than normal. The memory is lost. The mind works in a much different way; turning them around, right may mean left in their minds.

Remember things that happened ten years ago is sometimes easier than what they heard ten minutes before hand. Alzheimer’s patients have a hard time remembering short-term memories. The long-term memories are implanted in their minds but short term comes and goes just as fast.

Alzheimer’s can affect people in many different ways and memory loss is not the only thing that affects them. Besides memory loss, they might have a hard time with personal hygiene for instance. When taking a bath with or without assistance they could be easily frightened. Sometimes the patient will think the water is not good for their skin; it can frighten them to the point that they think they are drowning. The action may lead an expert to believe that OCD is present, yet it is merely a condition of the disorder. (OCD: People tend to think that they are plagued by disease and will reluctantly adhere to normal actions, such as taking out the trash, believing it can cause disease) Water is a freighting thing and this is something that the progressive condition known as dementia causes.

Dementia and Alzheimer’s are both related to an extent and both are related to the Alzheimer’s disease. Usually when an Alzheimer’s patient has one disorder, they will have the other, since Alzheimer’s disease develops into dementia.

Your loved one may feel angry with the caregiver, failing to realize what is happening. Sometimes the loved one gets mad at the caregiver and not someone else because they are together more. The caregiver is the mean person in patient’s life because they are the one trying to do what needs to be done, and the patient does not want to do these things.

Dementia and its symptoms can play a big role in the life of someone who has been affected with Alzheimer’s disease. There are many medications out now to help treat the condition and help make life a little easier for these patients. Don’t expect a cure for them because there is none at present, since the disease is brought on by aging.

Alzheimer's patients will sink into their own little world eventually as time progresses. They might stop eating, become incontinent, refuse medication; thinking it is poison.

When you are caring for a loved one, it is so hard and depressing to sit and watch them slip back in time and into their own little world, sometimes into their childhood days.

Just hang in there and be patient, giving them all the love and joy you can to make them comfortable

Care Provider and the Alzheimer

How they deal with Alzheimer patients

Working in the nursing field you can see a lot of bad illness. Some of the conditions cause stress, yet a caregiver has to learn how to keep their head up high and go on with their job.

One of the hardest conditions that affect caregivers is dealing with Alzheimer’s patients. Most caregivers are asked to seek supportive channels, such as friends, family, etc to relieve their mental anguish.

Caregivers must be the friend, and to be as supportive as possible, which believe me it is no easy task to deal with patients with Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimer’s patients are one of the hardest types of disease to deal with. Do to the fact that they are healthy as an ox and there brain is being killed slowly, little by little, thus a chain reactions will unfold. Ironically, Alzheimer’s disease forces the person back to youth. In fact, many will pass on in a fetal position.

Alzheimer’s disease slowly kills ones brain to the point that they don’t know how to even feed them self. They love to tell stories but nothing in yesterday times, its all when they was a little kid, or back twenty years early. They can remember those days during the first stages but they have a hard time remembering yesterday.

In fact, Alzheimer’s patient can’t remember what they eat for breakfast but they can remember what dress or pant suit they had on the first day of school during the 4th grade. The condition mysterious actions in how it works. They can tell some good stories. I love to listen to how they live back in the day that’s when they act as though they were the happiest when it comes down to it ,

It’s the only memory the patient will remember. They have no idea of today or yesterday, its like it don’t even happen to them, almost like there clock stop moving ahead and they are standing still. The mild and moderate stages are the easiest to deal with. The serve stage is one of the hardness stages to go though. This is they know nothing and don’t even talk to anyone and that is due to the fact that they forgot how to talk to any one at this point. They can’t even tell you they have to go to the bathroom or that they are hungry. All they want to do is sleep and that’s all.

The Alzheimer’s patients are happy most of the time. Nothing bothers them due to the fact that they don’t know how to react. All their senses seem to be forsaken, which even if the patient falls they will not feel pain. They don’t even know when they are in pain that’s because they for get what pain is.

Scientist is working everyday to find a cure and I really hope they do. It’s so sad to see these people’s mind go and they not are able to do anything about it. It’s a shame that their memory is robbed of them.

How caregivers cope
Caregivers often cope with Alzheimer’s by setting up a support system. Sadly, many caregivers of Alzheimer’s patients however will fail to take care of themselves. They may miss meals, doctor appointments, etc. Caregivers of Alzheimer’s patients are encouraged to continue caring for self, rather than allow the disease take control of their life. If you are a caregiver of an Alzheimer’s patient, it is wise to take control now by setting up your own support team, such as family, friends, professionals, etc.

Care giving for Alzheimer Patients

How to cope

Coping with Alzheimer’s disease is difficult for the patient, as well as the care provider. If you are taking care of someone with Alzheimer’s disease, it is nice to know help is available. It isn’t easy to be a caregiver for Alzheimer’s patients. A caregiver needs to be a special person and be able to work with all kinds of changes on a daily basis.

Health issues are always rising at all hours of the day in older adults with this disease. A caregiver needs to be able to monitor and beware of these changes as they occur. When monitoring these changes a journal needs to be kept so that whoever is caring will be aware of the changes so they can continue whatever care has already been done. Taking notes will help you to recall specific areas that helped you the best deal with your patient.

A daily routine needs to be in order so the patient doesn’t get confused. For instance, if you cook three meals a day, try to maintain a scheduled time each day.

Not only does the patient have changes in memory, such as loss. The patient will also have mood shifts, or behavior alterations. Their health changes rapidly at times as well.

Keep track of their eating habits; how and what they eat, weight change, activities, sleep patterns and bowel movements are very important to their well-being. A list of medication changes, weather or not they refused to take them, and how they reacted after taking the medication is ideal. When a journal is kept and complete it help the next caregiver to know how and what to look for if there is something different going on that might need to be attended to by a physician. Speaking of caregivers, it is idea to keep the same caregiver, since the change may threaten the patient.

Knowing the daily routine the Alzheimer’s patient will be more comfortable and sometimes they don’t get so confused with what is happening to them. It is frustrating to know that your memories are perishing along with your brain and body.

Alzheimer’s disease causes the skin to change, which a rash or abrasions need to be watched out for, since it can lead to complications. Lying in one position could cause an abrasion; medication changes could cause a rash.

Be sure that the patient gets a lot of liquids so they don’t dehydrate, Keeping track on the bathroom habits as well is very important to make sure they are going. A bathroom routine habit may need to be set up; sometimes the Alzheimer’s patient will see him or herself in the mirror and think there is someone in there. It will trigger the emotion and cause a reaction.

Alzheimer’s patients have sleep disorders as well sometimes. A regular bedtime is very important. Try to put the patient in bed at the same hour each night. Do the activities or exercise in the morning instead of at night to get their adrenaline slowed down before bedtime.

When putting them to bed make sure, they are comfortable; put pillows around them, under their knees or wherever one is needed to help relieve joint pain. Try to keep the temperature in the household the same and at a comfortable setting. Sometimes the patient can’t tell you if they are hot or cold. Keep in mind that Alzheimer’s disease causes drops and increases in body temperature, since areas of the brain are damaged.

Most of all, the caregiver needs to take care of them in order to care for the person who has Alzheimer’s disease.

Battling the Disease Alzheimer

How to cope

Battling the disease Alzheimer is not a joke. The disease causes the person to feel depressed, angry, hurt, which can encourage the patient to fight. The patient may kick, scream, argue, pull hair, choke, punch, or act out in some violent way when they feel threaten. The person develops psychoses as the disease progresses. Psychoses cause the patient to hallucinate. Hallucinations lead them to fantasy, nightmares, or make them feel delirious.

Once the patient reaches the moderate stage of Alzheimer’s disease, the risks increase. The patient becomes subject to infections, pneumonia, and so on. As the disease progresses to the severe stage, the patient gradually dies.

In the last days, the patient will seem to feel better. In this instance, looks are deceiving, since the patient is preparing death. In some instances, the patient may appear to hack up his or her guts before they pass.

How does a person detect the early warnings?
Medical experts that treat Alzheimer’s disease, such as geriatrician feel that inactive social activities play a role of Alzheimer’s disease. Medical experts or geriatricians believe that the older generations who slacks socializing or choose to live alone, the experts claim these people are subjects to Alzheimer’s disease and/or dementia. Medical experts’ believe that elders who have a higher education are capable of detecting the disease, or symptoms ahead of progression. If symptoms are noted soon, intervention steps can be taking to reduce progression.

To detect the early warnings you should learn more about Alzheimer’s symptoms. Keep in mind that the disease slowly creeps in, and at first symptoms may not present them selves. For the most part, you want to consider changes in voice, behaviors, etc. Mood swings, memory loss, etc are signs of Alzheimer’s disease.

How do doctors decide what causes Alzheimer’s disease?
Doctors will consider environment, healthcare, genetics, etc, when assessing Alzheimer’s disease. The economics for example, factors into the disease, since the world is filled with harmful pollutions. Healthcare insurance is one of the leading causes of increasing disease. Due to outrageous costs of healthcare, people can’t afford to get to the doctors early, which halts doctors from finding cures. Medical experts’ believe that the older population has far less insurance coverage than any other group in society. The economy alone has caused a serious of problems, including increases in Parkinson’s disease, Bradycardia, Osteoporosis, heart disease, Hypothyroidism, Strokes, heart attacks, Urine incontinence, bedsores, herpes zoster shingles, diabetes, prostatic hyperplasia, cancer, and so forth.

According to experts if the disease if discovered earlier it is curable. Once the condition starts to progress however, a cure is not available. Healthcare insurance, environment, etc, all play a part in the cause of Alzheimer’s disease.

Recently, tests were conducted, which the results showed the male sperm after the age 30, is subject to disorders. In short, if a man gets a woman pregnant after he turns 30, studies has shown that some disorder within the sperm increases the chances of birth defects, and/or disabilities. In summary, more children are born with disorder, especially if the male was aged 30 when the mother became pregnant.

The notion behind this makes us wonder if the male sperm after age 30 could also cause Alzheimer’s disease. We can’t help but to wonder. The deal is Alzheimer’s disease is mysterious. The disease takes the person back in time, freezes them, and finally kills the person. The person starts to relive early childhood memories, yet the patient cannot recall what happen two minutes early.

Battling Alzheimer’s disease is no joke. Learn to spot the early warnings to fight back.

Alzheimer the Series of Disorders

Most people believe that Alzheimer disease is a single disorder. What these people do not know is that Alzheimer’s disease is a series of disorders. The misunderstanding of Alzheimer disease is noted, since most patients with the disease appear to have healthy bodies, yet their mind is deteriorating.

Alzheimer disease may start however with sleep apnea, Parkinson’s disease, Down syndrome, heart disease, strokes, sleeping disorders, and so forth. Various medical conditions can link to Alzheimer disease.

How does Alzheimer affect the brain?
Alzheimer disease damaged vital aspects of the brain. The disease causes damage to the parietal lobe. The parietal lobe once damaged will cause loss of capabilities to recognize people, places, and things. The disease affects the frontal lobe, which causes common symptoms of Alzheimer, such as urinary incontinence. The disease causes facial paralysis on one side or the other. Since personality rests at the frontal lobe, the person’s personality may change, as well as his or her behavior. The patient will feel apathy and inattention which results from the damage caused by Alzheimer's disease. The frontal lobe when damaged will also cause broca aphasia, which makes it difficult for a person to communicate fluently. Words are slurred, or the person will find it difficult to express words. The damage also causes the patient to loose the ability to interpret sound.

Alzheimer damages the lobes, which also causes injure to the temporal lobe, which is above the brain stem. The cerebellum is at the opposite side of the brain stem. Occipital lobe is damaged as well, which causes Wermicke’s aphasia. The damage causes the patient to garble when speaking, or loose senses of speech. The frontal and temporal lobe is where recent memories are stored, which is why Alzheimer’s affect the short-term memory.

How do doctors determine what causes brain degeneration?
The brain separates into two halves of its cerebrum, which each side functions differently. For this reason, doctors will consider one side of the brain or the other when searching for damage. The left-brain is where our language arrives. If Alzheimer’s disease is sending messages to the doctor, i.e. if the patient’s language is slurred or interrupted, the expert will review the left-brain looking for cause.

How do patients manage when the disease progresses?
At what time the disease progresses, experts recommend that the patient assigns a proxy, or Power of Attorney to manage their health care needs, and financial needs. The patient is encouraged to assist the doctor with making good decisions with his or her treatment.

Once the disease progresses, comfort is the prime focus of health care. Since doctors do not have a cure that prolongs the condition, keeping the patient as comfortable as possible is essential.


Once the disease progresses it is up to the family and proxy to decide if the patient will need additional treatment for pneumonia, which is common when Alzheimer disease progresses. In addition, the family and proxy are responsible to decide if the patient should be feed artificially. Alzheimer patients at progressive stage will dismiss meals.

What medications are giving to help the patient?
Doctors will prescribe painkillers, as well as rivastigmine, donepezil, antipsychotic drugs, galantamine, etc to treat the condition. As Alzheimer progresses the patient will hallucinate, and illustrate other symptoms of psychoses. Risperidone, haloperidol, or olanzapine is considered to treat psychotic episodes.

How can supplements help the patient?
Certain supplements have been proven to enhance memory and prolong Alzheimer symptoms. Doctors consider Ginkgo Biloba, lecithin, cyclandelate, ALC, ergoloid mesylates, etc to slow dementia, or Alzheimer’s disease. Vitamins, such as B9, B12, E, etc, are considered as well.