Reading, Engaging, and Communicating with an Alzheimer's Patient (Podcast))

By Bob DeMarco

Take the extra step. Walk the extra yard. Engage. Keep on living. Don’t be afraid to try things. Do things that you have always done together. Don’t let anyone discourage you or get in your way.


Make your own parade and have fun.

Click the button above to listen. If you don't see the podcast button go here. You are welcome to comment, share or embed this podcast.

If you would like to hear my Alzheimer's patient, Dotty, read and interact with me -- go here.

More About the Alzheimer's Reading Room

• Alzheimer's Caregivers Advice and Insight (20 articles)
• Test Your Memory for Alzheimer's (5 Best Self Assessment Tests)
• Alzheimer's Disease Statistics
• What is Alzheimer's?
• Alzheimer's and Driving
• Alzheimer's Caregiving Dealing with Behavior
• Dementia and the Eight Types of Dementia

Bob DeMarco is the editor of the Alzheimer's Reading Room and an Alzheimer's caregiver. Bob has written more than 1,690 articles with more than 70,000 links on the Internet. Bob resides in Delray Beach, FL.

Original content Bob DeMarco, the Alzheimer's Reading Room

Alzheimer's and the Dreaded Bowel Movement

I already wrote about how I beat urinary incontinence and bladder infections. That solution is not perfect. Poop. No enema, no pills, no laxatives. How I won the Poop-E war.....

By Bob DeMarco
Alzheimer's Reading Room

Alzheimer's and the Dreaded Bowel Movement

Bob DeMarco is the editor of the Alzheimer's Reading Room and an Alzheimer's caregiver. Bob has written more than 1,200 articles with more than 9,000 links on the Internet. Bob resides in Delray Beach, FL.

Popular Articles on the Alzheimer's Reading Room -- September (Top Landing Pages)

Test Your Memory (TYM) for Alzheimer's or Dementia in Five Minutes (#1 June, July, August, September)
A new cognitive test for detecting Alzheimer's disease is quicker and more accurate than many current tests, and could help diagnose early Alzheimer's, dementia, or mild cognitive impairment.
To continue reading go here.

Dementia and the Eight Types of Dementia
Dementia is a an illness that usually occurs slowly over time, and usually includes a progressive state of deterioration. The earliest signs of dementia are usually memory problems, confusion, and changes in the way a person behaves and communicates.
To continue reading go here.

Five Ways to Keep Alzheimer's Away
A recently released study showed that regular exercise is one of the best ways to reduce your risk of dementia and can help slow progression of Alzheimer's disease. Less well known is the fact that if you have a big belly in middle age the chances that you could suffer from dementia are tripled.
To continue reading go here.

The Combination of Aricept and Namenda Helps Slow the Rate of Decline in Alzheimer's Patients
"The results of this study should change the way we treat patients with Alzheimer's disease. Cholinesterase inhibitors are approved for use in mild to moderate dementia, while memantine has been approved for advanced dementia. But it looks like there is an advantage in prescribing both drugs as initial treatment."--John Growdon, MD
To continue reading go here.

A Simple Three Minute Test Can Detect the Earliest Stage of Alzheimer's Disease
The study shows that the combination of a very brief three-minute cognitive screening test, called the Mini-Cog (MC), with a Functional Activities Questionnaire (FAQ) -- administered to a family member or friend -- could accurately identify individuals with MCI and undiagnosed dementia.
To continue reading go here.

Subscribe to The Alzheimer's Reading Room--via Email

Bob DeMarco is the editor of the Alzheimer's Reading Room and an Alzheimer's caregiver. The Alzheimer's Reading Room is the number one website on the Internet for news, advice, and insight into Alzheimer's disease. Bob has written more than 800 articles with more than 18,000 links on the Internet. Bob resides in Delray Beach, FL.

Popular articles on the Alzheimer's Reading Room

• The Metamorphosis of This Alzheimer's Caregiver (Part One)
• Test Your Memory (TYM) for Alzheimer's or Dementia in Five Minutes
• Does the Combination of Aricept and Namenda Help Slow the Rate of Decline in Alzheimer's Patients
• Five Ways to Keep Alzheimer's Away
• Is it Really Alzheimer's or Something Else?
• Alzheimer's Wandering Why it Happens and What to Do
• 10 Good Reasons to Subscribe to the Alzheimer's Reading Room Now
• World Health Care Spending and Performance Ranking by Country (Table)
• What is Dementia?
• Dementia and the Eight Types of Dementia
• Walmart and this Alzheimer's Caregiver
• Dimebon Connection Study
• Are Alzheimer's Caregivers the Forgotten?
• A Simple Three Minute Test Can Detect the Earliest Stage of Alzheimer's Disease
• Wii a Useful Tool for Alzheimer's Caregivers
• 2009 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures
• The Mini-Cog Test for Alzheimer's and Dementia

The 36-Hour Day: A Family Guide to Caring for People with Alzheimer Disease, Dementia, and Memory Loss

Original content Bob DeMarco, Alzheimer's Reading Room

Simple Techniques for Communicating with People with Alzheimer's Type Dementia

Alzheimer's Reading Room: The Validation Breakthrough: Simple Techniques for Communicating with People with Alzheimer's Type Dementia

The early signs of Dementia (Alzheimer's)

Looking back, there is little doubt in my mind that if I had had the proper education or information I would have realized my mother was suffering from dementia sooner. Most people like me tend to ignore the symptoms at first believing they are simply signs of "old age". Anyone who ends up in my shoes knows and understands that a person in the early stages of dementia or Alzheimer’s can function with some normality--even drive a car. It is not until they deteriorate or until some "event" takes place that we wake up to reality.

The article on the next page is one of the best I have read. The basic underlying premise is that behavior changes slowly in the elderly and if they begin to suffer cognitive impairment it will be evidenced in behavioral changes. Sometimes these changes can be quite subtle but if detected could raise a “red flag”.

If my mother had been enrolled in any of these studies I feel certain she would have been diagnosed with dementia sooner. This would have allowed me to get her in an exercise program, get her proper nutrition, and insure that she was taking her medicines as prescribed. I leaned in the last three years how important these three factors are in the quality of her life.

My mother turned 91 years old in June and she suffers from Alzheimer’s disease. I am her CarGiver.


I am an Alzheimer's Caregiver: The early signs of Dementia (Alzheimer's)

The National Public Health Road Map to Maintaining Cognitive Health (Road Map)

Download the The Healthy Brain Initiative

A National Public Health Road Map to Maintaining Cognitive Health.

The Healthy Brain Initiative

The Healthy Brain Initiative

The 36-Hour Day: A Family Guide to Caring for People with Alzheimer Disease, Other Dementias, and Memory Loss in Later Life

This best-selling book is the "bible" for families caring for people with Alzheimer disease...



Read the full text review at The Alzheimer's Reading Room