 |
|
 |
||||
 |
|
|||||
 |
 |
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
The highest form of wisdom is kindness. ~Talmud Robyn Feld has created a journal for caregivers to help them work through sadness, frustration, confusion and isolation. Through this book you can learn about the infinite number of behavior variations a patient may experience. The pages are green, blue, gold and white representing Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. The chapters include: Spring - remembering the person before AD Summer - the diagnosis Autumn - the steady decline Winter - the sad reality In the Spring section there are places to write about family, children, celebrations and holidays, friends, education, childhood memories and memorable travels. This section has no notes and is mainly a journal entry section. Summer explores dilemmas like the patient not being able to drive and how the comfort of familiar things like taking care of a garden or maintaining friendships can help even when memory is failing. The section on obsessive behaviors explains the frustration of memory loss and there are real-life examples. Sections on handling money and getting support from the medical community make this book practical. Autumn addresses a series of challenges and the examples given are very comforting. As people deal with the challenges they tell how they overcame them and this gives caregivers ideas for how to address issues they are facing. I became very emotional while reading the "Language Challenges" section. To lose your ability to speak and not to be able to tell people what you need or want seems to be the ultimate in frustration for AD patients. The necessity of keeping up with doctor's visits and tests is brought home rather starkly in one story of a man who could not tell his caregivers how he was feeling. By reading this book you can become aware of these issues in order to make the patient more comfortable and cared for. Paranoia, hallucinations and delusions are also discussed. Especially helpful sections on creative care, caring for the caregiver and grief counseling make this chapter especially helpful. When you are facing choices at the end of a patients life, the Winter chapter explains the symptoms of decline, medical decisions that must be made and choices like hospice care or faith-based comfort. Many of the issues in this chapter like the issue of a feeding tube would be best to discuss with the patient as soon as a diagnosis is made. By reading this chapter you learn so much about the true feelings of the family and how they either regret decisions or were at peace. The last section includes a place to put phone numbers and addresses. Overall this seems an essential guide for caregivers because it is always best to know what might occur so you can be prepared for all circumstances and challenges. ~The Rebecca Review |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||
|
|
||||
|
|
