AlzHub

MEME - Blogging

Via jewbu quest:

Do you like the look and the contents of your blog?

Look:  I wanted to keep it simple and easy on the eyes. A confusing site about Alzheimer's didn't make much sense. My lack of design skills are readily apparent.
Content:  I won't be happy until I can write "Cure Found For Alzheimer's".

Does your family know about your blog?

No, but that's not a hard and fast rule. 

Can you tell your friends about your blog? Do you consider it a private thing?

Friends, yes. Acquaintances, no. Since it is published for the world to see I can't say it's private but they are my personal thoughts on a public issue.

Do you just read the blogs of those who comment on your blog?  Do you try to discover new blogs?

Both.  I read the blogs of those who comment and I look for new (to me) blogs. There are some talented writers out there.

Did your blog positively affect your mind?  Give an example.

The topic of my blog is overwhelming and without any clear cut answers.  My blog lets me write it out and have my thoughts and info in one place so it is easier to handle.  If it also helps someone else, that's even better.

What does the number of visitors to your blog mean?  Do you use a traffic counter?

I don't have a counter.  Comments are a better indication of whether I've made a connection. If I were concerned about the number of visitors, I'd have picked a different topic.

Do you imagine what other bloggers look like?

Not anymore.  I haven't been right yet.

Do you think blogging has any real benefit?

Yes. It brings people with similar interests or situations together.  Insights and
information are shared.  On a larger scale, I hope that blogs can act as a basis for changing what needs to be changed and fixing what needs to be fixed.

Do you think that the blogsphere is a stand alone community separated from the real world?

I don't believe it's a stand alone community.  With large companies, major news organizations and millions of people using them, they are too mainstream to be considered stand alone.

Do some political bloggers scare you? Do you avoid them?

Don't have time.  There are so many and finding one that is honest and unbiased is like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

Do you think that criticizing your blog is useful?

Yes.  It makes me think, provides a different point of view and it means someone is actually reading it.

Have you ever thought about what would happen to your blog if you died?

I wouldn't write it anymore.

Which blogger has had the greatest impression on you?

All the caregiver bloggers for keeping me involved but especially Karma for getting me to share.

Which blogger do you think is the most similar to you?

Hopefully none are too similar.

Name a song you want to listen to.

Completely unrelated but since I'm writing this on a beautiful clear evening:  California Stars from Mermaid Avenue (Wilco and Woody Guthrie).

Memory Book

Mom always liked reminiscing about things she remembered from years ago, especially her parents, sisters and the house my sister and I grew up in.

Like most Alzheimer’s patients, mom’s long term memory was pretty good while her short term memory was very bad.  But sometimes even the people, places and events from long ago would get mixed up. 

One day, while looking at online photo printing services, I saw that one of the products they offered was a photo book.  What a great idea.  I could get some photos together and make mom what I called a Memory Book.

I went through all our family photo’s and picked out some of her parents, her sisters, dad, their wedding day, relatives that we saw all the time, our old house, pets, etc. and put them all together in the book and labeled them so she could always read who and what they were even if she couldn’t remember.  I even put them in chronological order as a guide to when things happened even though I wasn’t sure she’d notice.  I thought maybe on some level that would help. 

The book was a hit.  When mom asked about someone or something that was in the book, I could bring it out and we’d look through it.  It never failed to bring a smile to her face.  Being able to see the photo’s really helped her memory too.  When she saw the photo's she remembered names of people that I had forgotten.

Of course, when she put the book away in a drawer, she’d forget about it.  Out of sight, out of mind.  But I was always able to find it pretty quick.  We were able to spend a lot of time looking through that book together.

--I made and purchased my book (typically called photobooks on the websites) through Shutterfly.com.  The quality was very good.  Now that mom’s gone, that book means a lot to me.  There are several other online photo printing services that have something very similar such as:  KodakGallery.com, Photoworks.com and Snapfish.com.

Technorati Tags: Reminisce, photo book, memory book, photos, photography

Merry Christmas 2005

I'd like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and offer a little advice for today.  If you are going to be spending the holiday with someone with Alzheimer's, remember that, like everything else today, moderation is the key.

Whether you stay at home and have people over or you take your loved one out somewhere, what is fun and relaxing to you can be confusing and disorienting to someone with Alzheimer's disease.

Have fun, just be aware and try not to overdo it.  By including someone with Alzheimer's in your holiday activities, that is a far better gift than anything you could buy in a store. 

Merry Christmas!

Memory Tree

In times of loss, good friends can make all the difference.  Just knowing that they are there with support and that they care about the things that matter to me.

Some friends surprised me recently with an offer to plant a memorial tree in moms honor in a local park.  What a great idea.  A living tribute in the town we called home for so many years.  A way for me to visit with her since she's buried out of state with her husband of 51 years.  A tree that will grow big, provide shade and beauty for many people and be there long after we are all gone.

The tree was planted last Thursday:

I can see mom's smile now.  I know she would have loved it.

Petition For U. S. Postal Service "Alzheimer's Research" Stamp

There is currently a petition underway to get the U. S. Postal Service to issue a "Alzheimer's Research" stamp.  The stamp will be used to to raise awareness of Alzheimer's and to raise funds for Alzheimer's research.

The petition has over 80,000 signatures so far but needs as many as it can get to demonstrate the need and public support for the stamp.

The petition also has a section where you can add your own personal story to send to the Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee.

You can sign the petition here.

Alzheimer's Talking Point Forum By The Alzheimer's Society

The Alzheimer's Society (the UK’s leading care and research charity for people with dementia, their families and carers) is providing access to an Alzheimer's forum about the disease and related aspects.

From the Alzheimer's Talking Point forum website:

The aim of this discussion forum is to share information and experiences about all forms of dementia. It is available through the Alzheimer's Society website but is run and hosted by discussion forum members themselves.

Like a support group, the forum provides a place for people suffering from Alzheimer's and their caregivers to ask questions, learn about resources and support options, ways to raise awareness and, most importantly, talk about what is happening and have someone listen.

The forum has over 1,000 members from all over the world and offers an amazing amount of information.  I read through some of the posts and there were comments on so many of the things that everyone asks about at one time or another.  Things like guilt, when is it time to move into a home, how to find a good home, emotions, wandering, etc.

Check it out.

Link:

Alzheimer's Talking Point forum - The Alzheimer's Society

Maintain Your Brain - Alzheimer's Association

The Alzheimer's Association has put together a good consumer education program called Maintain Your Brain.

The common sense suggestions fall under the general categories of staying mentally and physically active and monitoring your overall health. 

While we all wait for research to provide us with a treatment or cure for Alzheimer's, these are things we can all do right now. 

Click on the link for more detailed information:

Think About Your Future. Maintain Your Brain Today

Keeping Current

Due to the everchanging nature of articles and their sources on the internet, I occasionally come across links to information in my posts that no longer work.

When I do, I try to find alternate sources of information and fix the links with the new sources. 

When you visit, if you come across some links that no longer work, please send me an email and I'll try to fix it.  Especially if it is a topic that you feel is important.  If it's important to you, it will be important to a lot of other people. 

Thanks for visiting.

Women And Alzheimer's

Here's a National Women's Health Report newsletter on Women and Alzheimer's disease from the National Women's Health Resource Center in cooperation with the Alzheimer's Association.

The newsletter is 8 pages long and contains a lot of information and resources.  Read it and share it.

Click here to download.  Newsletter is in .PDF format.  Free Adobe Reader required to read.  See link to free download in the left sidebar.  Link via the Alzheimer's Association.

Patti Davis interview on KPCC

President Reagan's daughter, Patti Davis, visited Kitty Felde at public radio station KPCC on Feb. 1. 2005 to talk about her book The Long Goodbye and the impact of her father's battle with Alzheimer's disease.

Click here to listen.  The interview is a little over 20 minutes long.