Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
Managing a disease at home is extremely important to the sick persons well-being. After
all, care does not stop even after he or she is discharged from the hospital and away from the
watchful eyes of doctors and nurses. Whether home management of a disease or condition entails
giving prescribed medication at the proper time and dose or involves more advanced procedures
such as irrigating and dressing a surgical wound, it plays a big role in the sick persons recovery.1
Alzheimers disease is managed at home most of the time. People with Alzheimers
disease are rarely taken to see the doctor for the disease itself; most often they need a doctors
attention for other conditions that are associated with Alzheimers disease such as malnutrition
and respiratory problems.2 There is no cure for it as of yet, so management of the disease
involves supportive care. This means that the person with Alzheimers disease is prescribed
medications to make him more comfortable and independent.3 Supportive care also involves
providing a safe environment for the Alzheimers patient, keeping him oriented to his
surroundings and providing a routine that he can follow consistently. Caring for a person with
Alzheimers at home is important because the goal is to give him comfort and prevent any
accidents that may happen as a result of his dementia.
TAKING CARE OF KIDS AT HOME AS AN ALZHEIMER'S PATIENT
People who develop Alzheimers disease are usually 65 years old or older, so if they do
have children they would be grown up by then. But there is a form of the disease called earlyonset Alzheimers. Five to ten percent of Alzheimers patients develop it at an earlier age, with
people starting to show symptoms of the disease as early as age 20. 4,5
Raising kids in general, even when the parents are healthy, is a difficult task as it involves
a lot of time and effort; thus raising them while coping with Alzheimers disease presents several
challenges. These challenges may include how the Alzheimers patient will ensure his personal
safety as well as the safety of his children; how to explain to them that they may develop the
disease later in life; and how to cope with the mental and emotional stress brought about by
changes in the way the family works once symptoms of the disease begin to show.
Though there are no set rules on how parents should raise their children, experts on the
field agree on some broad principles, namely: preparation for the parenting role, prediction of
how negative things happen in the parent-child relationship and avoiding them, planning and
practicing positive interactions, and learning to thank, appreciate, and praise children. 6
When a person who has Alzheimers disease has to raise children the above principles
still apply. But studies have shown that the children of people who have Alzheimers disease tend
to be sad, afraid, angry, and resentful; not necessarily toward the parent with Alzheimers disease
but to their current situation in general. They feel sad for themselves and the parent with
Alzheimers disease, they fear the embarrassment that a parent with Alzheimers disease may
bring, they are angry that they must adjust to things that most of their friends and peers do not
experience, and they are resentful because they cannot do certain things (like invite people over
and have house-parties) because of a family member with Alzheimers disease.7 Therefore the
parent with Alzheimers disease on the early stages must make steps to address these issues,
ensure that the children have a strong emotional support system, and must show patience and
understanding toward them and what they are going through.
other pre-existing medical conditions that prevents him from swimming. Thus getting a doctors
advice is important before beginning a swimming routine or any other form of fitness regimen
for that matter.
Watching TV
Watching television programs is one of the most common forms of cheap and accessible
entertainment today. It serves to amuse and in some cases also to educate. There is no reason
why a person with Alzheimers disease should not engage in this activity.
A disadvantage of watching TV is inactivity and sedentariness. Watching too much TV
wont necessarily cause problems physically, aside from eye strain, but inactivity for long
periods of time will.
Too Much TV and Alzheimers Disease
A few years ago controversial results of a study by researchers from Case Western
Reserve University Hospital of Medicine and the University Hospitals of Cleveland were
published. The study stipulated that there is a link between watching too much television and
developing Alzheimers disease. The result of the study was gleaned from surveys and interviews
of caregivers of Alzheimers patients.11 This research is highly criticized by many experts and up
to now no hard evidence proving that watching too much television really causes Alzheimers
disease has been discovered.
HOW TO DEAL WITH ALZHEIMER'S RELATED STRESS
Stress cannot be entirely avoided in the course of a persons life. Stressors are
everywhere and people must find ways to properly deal with them. There are general ways to
relieve stress and they include things like breathing exercises, meditation, low-impact physical
exercise like Tai-Chi or Yoga, and progressive muscle relaxation. These things have been
discussed extensively by various authors and they are proven ways to increase relaxation and
proved a feeling of calm to a person.
The stress of Alzheimers disease, if not managed, will make living with it difficult. This
applies not only to the person suffering from it but also to his or her support system as well.
Family, friends, and caregivers share the stresses that Alzheimers disease brings. The
importance of relieving this stress is critical to the mental health of everyone involved. There
have been cases where children of people with Alzheimers disease end up needing psychiatric
care due to the unresolved trauma and stress that the experience of dealing with a loved one with
Alzheimers has brought them.7
Rice, Robyn. Home Care Nursing Practice: Concepts and Application, 3rd ed. St. Louis, MO: Mosby,
2001.
2
Perls TT, Herget M. Higher respiratory infection rates on an Alzheimer's special care unit and
successful intervention. J Am Geriatr Soc. 1995;43:(12):13414.
3
National Institute of Aging. Alzheimer's Disease Medications Fact Sheet.
http://www.nia.nih.gov/Alzheimers/Publications/medicationsfs.htm. Updated December 23, 2010.
Accessed June 20, 2011.
4
Grossberg GT, Desai AK. Management of Alzheimers Disease. The Journals of Gerontology.
2003;58:(4):331-353.
5
Turkington C, Mitchell D. The Encyclopedia of Alzheimer's Disease. 2nd ed. New York, NY: Infobase
Publishing; 2009.
6
Raser, Jamie. Raising Children You Can Live With: A Guide for Frustrated Parents. 1st ed. Houston,
TX: Bayou Publishing; 1999.
7
Hendershott, Anne. The Reluctant Caregivers: Learning to Care for a Loved One with Alzheimers. 1st
ed. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2000.
8
Friedman RB, Hadley JA. Letter by letter surface alexia. Cognitive Neuropsychology. 1992;9:185208.
9
Heston, Leonard. Progress in Alzheimers Disease and Similar Conditions. 1st ed. Arlington, VA:
American Psychiatric Publishing Inc; 1997.
10
Kuhn D, Bennet D. Alzheimers Early Stages: First Steps for Families, Friends, and Caregivers. 2nd
ed. Alameda, CA: Hunter House; 2003.
11
BBC News. TV link to Alzheimers. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/1204894.stm. Updated
March 6, 2001. Accessed June 20, 2011.
1