Family caregivers and friends who care for individuals with Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia can attend any or all of the six-part series from the Alzheimer’s Association Heart of America Chapter.

Cindy Miller and Debbie Holroyd, Dementia Care Specialists, will present each program.  This workshop series is not intended for professional caregivers.

“We find that if more people understand what the disease is, we can start eradicating some of those myths, and that helps the person and the family,” Cindy Miller explained in the first session on October 3. “We work with any kind of dementia, even though Alzheimer’s is in our organization name.”

• 5% of people age 60-65 have dementia
• 50% of individuals 85+ have dementia
• 75% live at home

All sessions are held from 1:30 – 3:00 p.m. in the Marvin Auditorium at the Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library

• ­Thursday, October 2, 2014 – “What can I expect?” An overview of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias
• ­­Thursday, October 9, 2014 – “I don’t need any help” Managing the individual’s resistance to care
• ­Thursday, October 16 2014 – “He just sits around all day” Explores the role of activities and structure for persons with the disease
• ­Thursday, October 23, 2014 – “Is she/he on too many medications?” Benefits and concerns of commonly prescribed medications
• Thursday, October 30, 2014 – “I can’t do this anymore” The challenges of making the placement decision; options and resources
• ­Thursday, November 6, 2014 – “I should, I ought, I have to” A discussion of the guilt that typically goes along with the role of the caregiver

Book and DVDs from the Health Information Neighborhood of the Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library will be available for checkout.

Preregistration is requested by contacting Cindy Miller at 785.271.1844 or cindy.miller@alz.org at the Alzheimer’s Association – Heart of America Chapter. For additional questions about dementia, schedule a time to talk or call the 24-hour Information and Support Line at 800-272-3900.

Checkout Alzheimer’s Resources at the Library

Alzheimer’s and Dementia Books

• Learning to speak Alzheimer’s: a grounding breaking approach for everyone dealing with the disease by Joanne Koeing Coste
• The Alzheimer’s caregiving puzzle : putting together the pieces by Patricia Callone
• A Caregivers guide to Alzheimer’s Disease: 300 Tips for making life easier by Patricia Callone
• The Alzheimer’s sourcebook for caregivers: a practical guide for getting though the day by Frena Gray Davidson
• The 36-hour day a family guide to caring for people with Alzheimer disease, other dementias, and memory loss in later life by Nancy L Mace
• Coach Broyles’ playbook for Alzheimer’s caregivers :a practical tips guide by Frank J Broyles
• Alzheimer’s in America : the Shriver report on women and Alzheimer’s : a study by Maria Shriver and the Alzheimer’s Association
• Tangles: a story about Alzheimer’s, my mother and me by Sarah Leavitt (2012) Health Information Neighborhood 616.831 LEA
• The Living End: A Memoir of Forgetting and Forgiving by Robert Leleux (2012) Health Information Neighborhood 616.831 LEL

Alzheimer’s DVD films

• Alzheimer’s disease facing the facts (2009) Health Information Neighborhood 616.831 ALZ
• The Alzheimer’s project (2009)
• Caring for a Loved One with Alzheimer’s: An Emotional Journey(DVD) (2012) Health Information Neighborhood 616.831 CAR

Recommended Alzheimer’s and Dementia Websites

• Alzheimer’s Association
• University of Kansas Alzheimer’s Disease Center
• MedlinePlus Health Topic: Alzheimer’s
• Mayo Clinic Alzheimer’s Disease
• American Health Assistance Foundation
• Alzheimer’s Publications

Lissa Staley

Lissa Staley helps people use the library. She is a Book Evangelist, Trivia Emcee, Classics Made Modern book discussion leader, NaNoWriMo Municipal Liaison, and frequent library customer. She loves her kids, being a librarian, living in Topeka, and helping people form connections and community. (She's the Community Connections Librarian!) She reads a new book every few days, but is enjoying the audiobook of "Empress of Forever" by Max Gladstone, the ebook "When We Were Magic" by Sarah Gailey and is eagerly awaiting John Scalzi's "The Last Emperox" in April!