Alzheimers Site
	Debbie Mandel BellaOnline's Alzheimers Editor

A Loving Caregiver Can Slow Down Alzheimer’s
A study, funded by the National Institutes of Health, demonstrates that closeness to one’s caregiver correlates with a slower decline in both cognition and function in activities of daily living, especially for people whose spouses took care of them.

Alzheimer’s and Halloween
Alzheimer’s and Halloween have something in common- they are both scary! Here are some tips for a fun Halloween:

How to Avoid Burnout for Dementia Caregivers
It is important for caregivers to take care of themselves. A caregiver is like the fixed point of a compass around which the Alzheimer’s individual revolves.

How to Celebrate the Holidays
The holidays are exciting, just bursting with festivities: Lights, colors, new furniture, visitors and parties. However, for the Alzheimer’s patient this time period might be overwhelming, even frightening. Here are seven coping tools to make the holiday brighter for both caregiver and loved one.

How to Get an Alzheimer's Parent to Accept Care
"My grandmother has been diagnosed with Alzheimers and the doctor told her that she needs more full time care. She won´t even entertain the idea. What do I do?"

How to Handle Alzheimer's Paranoia
She has been very ugly to me, and said she would rather be in a nursing home than with me. She is making it hard to care for her.

How to Identify Alzheimer's Patient Abuse
So how can you tell whether it is a fall, or an accidental bruise and not an injury inflicted by a caregiver – when you are not around to monitor your loved one?

How to Improve Your Interaction with the Patient
People afflicted with Alzheimer’s are highly emotional and can switch from laughter and affection to anger and sadness in a moment. By creating a calmer, more serene environment both of you feel better, act better and interrelate better. Here are some tips:

How to Show Alzheimer’s Patients Respect
One essential quality lacking in today’s Alzheimer’s care is a genuine respect for the patient. The diagnosis of cognitive impairment carries the stigma of “losing your mind,” “senility,” or “being empty headed.” Here are some tips to restore dignity to the cognitively impaired.

Is a Nursing Home Necessary?
My husband is in the middle stage of alzheimer´s. All of my friends and family think it is time to put him in a nursing home. Does he need my love for him more than he needs the care of professionals?

It’s Time to Take Care of Your Self
The holidaze are coming. Give yourself or a friend the gift of healing and optimism. In "Changing Habits" you will find my best concrete strategies and most uplifting and unusual stories to help you simplify and reconnect to your essential happiness.

Living with A Loved One
Dear Debbie, I need your help!!! My mother is driving me and the children crazy. Not only is she forgetful, but she is paranoid and always accusing me of not loving her. I feel like the madness is contagious.

Long Distance Caregiving
If you are a caregiver from a distance for an Alzheimer’s patient, whether this means the patient is being taken care of at home by another family member, a live-in companion or at a nursing home, you will feel guilty.How do you connect and supervise? How do you help those bearing the brunt?