Happy Easter to you and your family!
In-person and zoom Support Groups:
- ACA’s group with Miller & Vance, Tuesday, April 19, 11 – noon CT. Call (205) 871-7970 ormpiggott@alzca.org. Join us on zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86450491838
- Pell City group, February 22, at 6:30. Going forward this group will meet on the first Thursdays of the month at 6:30; and the third Tuesdays of the month at 6:30. Contact Bit Thomaston, ethomason50@gmail.com
- CJFS CARES, Mondays at 3 pm, contact Pam Leonard, pam@cjfsbham.org.
- Founders Place at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Tuesday’s at 10 am, contact Susan Logan, susanlogan65@gmail.com
- West Alabama Area Agency on Aging, Caregiver Support Group, Tuesdays, contact Nikki Poe, nikki.poe@westal.org.
- The Oaks on Parkwood, 4th Tuesday’s, 10:00 am, Contact: Karen Glover, karenrglover@bellsouth.net.
- CJFS CARES, Tuesdays, 7:00 pm, contact Pam Leonard, pam@cjfsbham.org.
- United Way Area Agency on Aging of Jefferson County, 3rd Tuesday of each month 11:30-12:30, contact Valarie Lawson, vlawson@uwaaa.org
- M4A, 2nd Thursday’s, noon – 1 pm. Contact Crystal Whitehead, cwhitehead@m4a.org
- M4A, 3rd Wednesday’s 2:00 – 3:00 pm. Contact Crystal Whitehead, cwhitehead@m4a.org
- Asbury United Methodist Church1st and 3rd Thursdays at 1:00, contact Maggie Dunaway at mdunaway@asburyonline.org.
Functional Psychology for Peak Brain Performance & Cognitive Decline, April 14, noon.
Michael J Fox Foundation webinar, “New to Parkinson’s”, April 21 11:00 CT. New to Parkinson’s? Steps to Take Today | Parkinson’s Disease (michaeljfox.org)
Putting the Spotlight on Elder Abuse: Forgotten Victims No More, free 30-minute virtual session, April 25, 4 p.m. Sponsored by AARP Alabama.
April Webinars from Alabama Lifespan Respite: https://alabamarespite.org/events2/
Alzheimer’s News:
Every Easter, 4th of July and Christmas ACA packs care baskets that volunteers deliver to some of the neediest families on our service programs. About 70% of these families have incomes less than $1,500 a month. Please consider donating $25 to help with the cost of an Easter basket. https://alzca.org/carebasket/
Easter is a fun holiday for everyone and a perfect opportunity to bring cheer to older adults. To help you enjoy the holiday, DailyCaring has rounded up 6 fun Easter activities for seniors. 6 Fun and Festive Easter Activities for Seniors – DailyCaring
As you gather with family and friends this weekend, take 12 minutes to watch this TedX Talk. What keeps us happy and healthy as we go through life? If you think it’s fame and money, you’re not alone – but, according to psychiatrist Robert Waldinger, you’re mistaken. As the director of a 75-year-old study on adult development, Waldinger has unprecedented access to data on true happiness and satisfaction. In this talk, he shares three important lessons learned from the study as well as some practical, old-as-the-hills wisdom on how to build a fulfilling, long life. Robert Waldinger: What makes a good life? Lessons from the longest study on happiness | TED Talk
Several years ago CaringKind undertook a project focused on bringing a model palliative care program for people with advanced dementia to three New York City nursing homes. This groundbreaking program, Comfort Matters®, was developed by the Beatitudes Campus in Phoenix, Arizona. At the conclusion of that project they published guidelines for use by nursing homes, “Palliative Care for People with Dementia: Why Comfort Matters in Long-Term Care”. Their experience showed them that for the person with even the most advanced dementia, comfort matters and is possible. Their booklet was created to aid the family and friends of people living with dementia in residential care find their way to comfort. For these residents, they strongly believe that comfort is key to providing the best possible quality of life and care. Download the free booklet:FindingComfort_cknyc.pdf (caringkindnyc.org)
The past couple of years have been unprecedented times of distressing news events. The Alzheimer’s Society in the United Kingdom (UK) offers helpful advice about how you can aid people living with dementia who are exposed to distressing news events. The constant stream of images and news can be overwhelming. The advice in the article can be helpful for all of us! The additional resources listed at the end of the article are based in the UK.Supporting people with dementia during distressing news events | Alzheimer’s Society (alzheimers.org.uk)
Boerderij Op Aarde is one of hundreds of Dutch “care farms” operated by people facing an array of illnesses or challenges, either physical or mental. They provide meaningful work in agricultural settings with a simple philosophy: rather than design care around what people are no longer able to do, design it to leverage and emphasize what they can accomplish.” It’s an approach that research has shown holds many benefits. For people with dementia, who are often less physically active and more isolated, farm settings promote movement and social interaction. And care farms can have emotional benefits, too, giving participants a sense of purpose and of making a meaningful contribution. In Holland People With Dementia Can Work on a Farm (reasonstobecheerful.world)
While the risk of developing dementia increases with age, we don’t yet know whether the higher rates seen in women are simply because they live longer. But it’s possible that female-specific reproductive factors may be able to explain some of the sex differences. An analysis found that some reproductive events — like an early or late start to menstruation, early menopause, and hysterectomy — were linked to higher risk of dementia while ever having been pregnant or having had an abortion and later menopause were linked to lower risk. Female Hormone Levels Could Provide Clues to Higher Risk of Dementia in Women (scitechdaily.com)
People who start abusing alcohol later in life may have an underlying neurologic condition such as dementia. Alcohol abuse is present in 1.7% of older adults (aged 40 years or older) in the US, and that abuse may be the first sign of an underlying neurologic condition, such as frontotemporal dementia. Nearly 1 in 15 patients with frontotemporal dementia started abusing alcohol late in life, and for 1 in 20 patients, alcohol abuse was the first symptom of the dementia. Late-Onset Alcohol Abuse Can Be a Presenting Symptom of Dementia, Researchers Find (newswise.com)
Lewy body dementia is a progressive, degenerative brain disease. It’s the third most common type of dementia, after Alzheimer’s and vascular dementia. It can be confusing because some symptoms are similar to those found in Alzheimer’s, but loss of short-term memory isn’t common. What Is Lewy Body Dementia? 5 Main Symptoms – DailyCaring.
The Fisher Center’s award-winning magazine, Preserving Your Memory® has gone interactive, which you can find here.
Support ACA by using AmazonSmile! Designate Alzheimer’s of Central Alabama and Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of your eligible purchases. smile.amazon.com