G8: Leading a Global Response to Alzheimer's

Editor's Note: This blog post originally appeared on Huffington Post Breaking news: Political leader delivers on promise. To wit: The British government has just announced that it will host a G8 Summit in December dedicated to Alzheimer's and Dementia. The announcement of the London event delivers on Prime Minister David Cameron's pledge to use the UK's Presidency of the G8 to launch a global initiative to address Alzheimer's disease. Mr. Cameron's leadership is a notable victory not only for those who suffer from Alzheimer's, but for families, communities and society at large. The prevalence of Alzheimer's is exploding around the

5 Things to Never Say to a Person With Alzheimer's

Editor's note: This blog post originally appeared on Huffington Post Yesterday afternoon, I walked into the spacious room belonging to Mary, a woman with dementia who has few visitors and with whom I've volunteered to spend a little time every week. I greeted her, complimented her on her beautiful turquoise sweater, and shook her hand. Then I sat down at her little table that was overflowing with books, photographs, the newspaper and other items she wants to keep close at hand. I started off by picking up a small framed photo of Mary with her husband and three children --

The Invisible Victims of Alzheimer’s Disease: Family Caregivers

Editor's note: This piece originally appeared in the July 2013 edition of the LEAD Coalition newsletter, which you can read online here To a few close family and friends who know me as a longtime caregiver and advocate for my aging parents and (more recently) my in-laws, I have done the impossible: survived 17 years of struggling to support the needs of three-out-of-four parents who have either died from, or currently struggle with, some form of dementia. To the rest of the world, I am invisible. At 46 years old, I am a small business owner, I have a college

Was My Mom Abused?

Editor's note: This piece originally appeared on Trish's AARP Blog On July 2, USA Today reported that more than 20 former employees of a Georgia Alzheimer's care center are facing dozens of criminal charges after a three-month state investigation uncovered allegations of cruel treatments of patients. The cruelty ranged from physical abuse - slapping patients and throwing water on them - to outright neglect and financial exploitation. Other abuse included shackling patients to their beds with sheets and 'double diapering' so the staff wouldn't have to change soiled diapers so often. As it turns out, various staff members had prior

A Long, Long Way From Home

Editor's note: this piece originally appeared on Lisa's blog, My Mom, My Hero This was probably 1942 right after my mom and dad had gotten married. Dad enlisted in the Navy and mom went to work on a army base in Brooklyn, N.Y. This was over seventy years ago. Unfortunately dad passed away 18 years ago and mom has no recollection of any of this. Today my mom is not sure where her home is. When she is having a hard day she repeats many times that she wants to go home, and it is always the home that belonged