Learning to speak Alzheimer's : a groundbreaiking approach for everyone dealing with the disease

The ticking meter -- Seeking a correct diagnosis -- What to expect : making the first decisions -- Habilitation, the new approach -- Seeing the world from the patient's perspective -- Tenet #1 : make the physical environment work -- Tenet #2 : know that communication remains possible -- Tenet #3 : focus on remaining skills -- Tenet #4 : live in the patient's world : behavioral changes -- Tenet #5 : enrich the patient's life -- Caring for the care partner -- Receiving home care -- Receiving care outside of a family home -- Inspiration -- Appendix. Good food for people with Alzheimer's.;A new approach to dealing with Alzheimer's disease offers a five step method for caring for people with progressive dementia, while offering hundreds of practical tips to ease life for patients and caregivers.

Joanne Koenig Coste, now a renowned pioneer in implementing positive methods of caring for Alzheimer's patients, began to develop her groundbreaking approach when her middle-aged husband was diagnosed with progressive dementia shortly after the birth of her fourth child. As she struggled to care for him and their family, she recognized that it was possible to avoid some of the tremendous emotional burdens Alzheimer's patients and their care providers endure during the course of the disease. In this book Koenig Coste explains the five tenets of her "habilitation" approach, an accessible and comprehensive plan proven to have worked with thousands of patients and care providers.
Refuting long-accepted ideas, she calls for care "partners" to join patients in their current sense of place or time; to encourage patients to use their remaining skills to support their sense of independence and dignity; and, most of all, to continue communicating with patients by focusing on their emotional "language." Learning to Speak Alzheimer's also offers hundreds of practical tips to ease life for everyone involved with Alzheimer's, including how to

- cope with the diagnosis and figure out if the patient wants to discuss it - respectfully stop the person from driving - make meal and bath times as pleasant as possible - adjust room design and lighting for the patient's comfort - deal with wandering, paranoia, and aggression - establish a plan of care

Learning to Speak Alzheimer's revolutionizes the way we perceive and deal with Alzheimer's disease.

A guide to more successful communication for the millions of Americans caring for someone with dementia: “Offers a fresh approach and hope. ”—NPR Revolutionizing the way we perceive and live with Alzheimer’s, Joanne Koenig Coste offers a practical approach to the emotional well-being of both patients and caregivers that emphasizes relating to patients in their own reality. Her accessible and comprehensive method, which she calls habilitation, works to enhance communication between care partners and patients and has proven successful with thousands of people living with dementia. Learning to Speak Alzheimer’s also offers hundreds of practical tips, including how to: · cope with the diagnosis and adjust to the disease’s progression · help the patient talk about the illness · face the issue of driving · make meals and bath times as pleasant as possible · adjust room design for the patient’s comfort · deal with wandering, paranoia, and aggression “A fine addition to Alzheimer's and caregiving collections.”— Library Journal (starred review) “Promises to transform not only the lives of patients but those of care providers...This book is a gift.”—Sue Levkoff, coauthor of Aging Well A guide to more successful communication for the millions of Americans caring for someone with dementia:Offers a fresh approach and hope.NPR Revolutionizing the way we perceive and live with Alzheimers, Joanne Koenig Coste offers a practical approach to the emotional well-being of both patients and caregivers that emphasizes relating to patients in their own reality. Her accessible and comprehensive method, which she calls habilitation, works to enhance communication between carepartners and patients and has proven successful with thousands of people living with dementia. Learning to Speak Alzheimers also offers hundreds of practical tips, including how to -Cope with the diagnosis and adjust to the diseases progression -Help the patient talk about the illness -Face the issue of driving -Make meals and bath times as pleasant as possible -Adjust room design for the patients comfort -Deal with wandering, paranoia, and aggression A true godsend to anyone caring for those afflicted with dementia.Rudolph E. Tanzi, coauthor of Decoding Darkness: The Search for the Genetic Causes of Alzheimers Disease

More than four million Americans suffer from Alzheimer’s, and as many as twenty million have close relatives or friends with the disease. Revolutionizing the way we perceive and live with Alzheimer’s, Joanne Koenig Coste offers a practical approach to the emotional well-being of both patients and caregivers that emphasizes relating to patients in their own reality. Her accessible and comprehensive method, which she calls habilitation, works to enhance communication between carepartners and patients and has proven successful with thousands of people living with dementia. Learning to Speak Alzheimer’s also offers hundreds of practical tips, including how to · cope with the diagnosis and adjust to the disease’s progression · help the patient talk about the illness · face the issue of driving · make meals and bath times as pleasant as possible · adjust room design for the patient’s comfort · deal with wandering, paranoia, and aggression

ONE COOL SPRING DAY in 1971, the kind that makes New Englanders smile at each other, I was driving with my husband down the main street of a small coastal town south of Boston.