Recognizing the early stages of Alzheimer’s or types of dementia in yourself or a loved one can be deeply stressful, but Regency Retirement Village of Huntsville offers resources to help manage the disease.
For the person with Alzheimer’s, there’s not only the daily challenges of remembering the once familiar, but also a sense of embarrassment or stigma to cope with. For the family, it’s heartbreaking to see someone you’ve loved your whole life being erased in a sense.
When coming to terms with a diagnosis, it is important to discuss available treatments with the doctor and develop coping strategies to adapt to the disease. Legal, financial and long-term care plans need to be arranged with family members.
Some react to the news with denial, refusing to talk about it. It’s a difficult conversation to have, but educating immediate family about the disease can possibly strengthen one’s support system and ensure the senior lives the best quality of life possible while receiving care.
Researchers say about 80% of people with Alzheimer’s experience anosognosia, a lack of awareness that they are even impaired. In that mindset, one can react with feelings of paranoia or anger when confronted with the reality that they can no longer manage things on their own. The best case scenario is a senior who accepts what the doctor says and understands they need help.
The loss of one’s independence is particularly tough, whether it is difficulty managing money or accepting the physical limitations that affect our ability to drive at a certain age. In the same way that Regency offers transportation to those no longer able to drive a car, we operate memory care communities to provide personalized assistance for Alzheimer’s and dementia-related needs.
Realizing that our residents are in a particularly susceptible age bracket, Regency Retirement Village in Huntsville operates a Specialty Care Assisted Living Community called Regency Remembrances within the Regency Retirement Village. This is a secured area with limited-access, a dedicated dining area with nutritious meals served, maid service including laundry, an emergency call system, and licensed nurse supervision.
For more information on this special unit, schedule a free consultation and visit https://www.regencyhuntsville.com/index.php/retirement-living-services/memory-care-retirement-community .
We understand how upsetting a diagnosis or Alzheimer’s can be, but Regency Retirement Village is here to help during a difficult time to reduce the impact of the disease on a Huntsville senior’s daily life.
Further reading:
Alzheimer’s Association: http://www.alz.org/
The Alzheimer’s Disease Education and Referral Center: http://www.nia.nih.gov/alzheimers
Alzheimer’s Reading Room: http://www.alzheimersreadingroom.com/
The New York Times “New Old Age” Blog: http://newoldage.blogs.nytimes.com/