Meet fellow Caregivers - Introduce yourself

I'm Diana and caring for a husband diagnosed with Frontal Temporal Dementia (FTD). He is 75 and was diagnosed 4 years ago when we noticed his aphasia (inability to find the right word). Since then his communication has deteriorated significantly - finding the right words is a nightmare, he can only read very simple words and only write his name. Both his short and long term memories are being affected and now his balance is becoming precarious - all part of this type of dementia. The "up" side of this dementia: I am becoming VERY good at charades (the word Yellow + sweeping hand motion = banana, FYI).
PLUS my mother was diagnosed with early-stage Alzheimer's about 3 months ago, but we had been seeing changes for the past 2 years.
Essentially, I just needed a place to belong, with people who understand the frustrations.

Yes, this is the right place to come to belong. I'm caretaker for my sister who so far has the diagnosis of mild dementia. We are having her bathroom equipped with a walk in shower by taking out the bathtub/shower. This group has helped and supported me in figuring out her pain reception. It is on going ........ Glad you joined us. The others will help you more than I will as I am new to this and am on the early side of care giving.

Hello @dianaodecatur Nice to e-meet you here, even under these circumstances. Glad you found Connect! I am Scott and I was the primary caregiver for my wife for 14 years as she fought brain cancer, with many dementia-like symptoms as well as being a secondary caregiver for my MIL who also had FTD. I found Connect while fighting the isolation that so often accompanies caregiving.

Here you will find many fellow caregivers who have broad shoulders, open ears, and are a nonjudgmental group. We also often share hints and tips we have learned from each of our experiences -- and yes we will understand the massive sense of frustration that often comes with caring for a loved one with dementia.

Glad to have you here!

I send you strength, courage, and peace!

Thank you for the encouragement! Frustration and isolation are the truly hard parts and I believe caregivers understand that best!

shortshot80 Nancy) Hi everyone, life has been mostly slow this summer. I am still tired, did go to Kidney doc, kidneys are not at their full capacity, so drinking more water. I have been working on my book,,that I have wanted to write for over umteen years. So finally getting something done on it. Hope to just carry on with it with no deadline to finish. I was one of five gals to fish with their husbands in 1971. So will see how things turn out. Bob is doing much better. He has been asked to go on a "Hero" flight for world war 2 veteran's. Bob jr is also going as caregiver. What a nice surprise. "So as the world turns" Several checks on my oxygen has been low so keeping a careful watch on that. Have a great day. Nancy

Colleen, I updated my profile following your steps. It is there and OK. But somehow I am off the Careg Group posts. I just thought people were busy and recovering from the hurricanes like we are but I'm thinking I changed something wrong. Could you make sure that I get back on please? I checked that I want any post that mentions me and any post from Care Givers. That's all. I don't want these invites to seminars. Please help me and thank you.

Hi @sallysue This is Scott saying hello as a bit of a test message to see if you get notification.

The Caregivers group discussion does ebb and flow as caregivers have spare moments to post -- or not 🙂 I remember the fact there were many weeks of caregiving when I had literally no extra time for anything outside of caregiving.

I imagine you are right, there are also folks recovering from the hurricanes too. Our son and his family live inland in Florida and while safe got hit pretty badly. Winds tore a portion of their house off and high water has cut their neighborhood off from the rest of town. Good news is they got power back on early this morning and the town is getting the traffic lights working again too. He rode out the storm since his organization was part of the evacuation process getting folks who couldn't drive or were in care centers to shelters. Now as the inspectors OK their homes they are starting to get some of them back.
Hope your profile is working for you now!

Peace, strength, and courage!

Wow Scott, I'm happy to hear your son and his family are safe! I have no idea how insurance works in the US but I wish him an painless process putting everything back together.
Monika

I'm Harriet Hodgson, a Rochester MN Health and Wellness writer, author of thousands of articles, and 36 books. This is my 20th year as a family caregiver and I've cared for three generations of family members. My mother developed stroke-induced dementia, and I was her family caregiver for nine years. In 2007 my elder daughter, the mother of my twin grandchildren, died from the injuries she received in a car crash. Months later, the twins' father died and my husband and I were appointed as their guardians/caregivers. We did this for seven years. In 2013 my husband's aorta dissected and he had three emergency operations. During the last one he suffered a spinal cord injury that paralyzed his legs. I've been his primary caregiver for four years, with more years to come. These experiences changed the focus of my current work from general health/wellness to caregiving. I wrote a series for caregivers: The Family Caregiver's Guide: How to Care for a Loved One at Home, Affirmations for Family Caregivers, A Journal for Family Caregivers, and The Family Caregiver's Cookbook: Easy-Fix Recipes for Busy Family Caregivers. Another caregiving book, So, You're Raising Your Grandkids! is in production now, and slated for spring release. I also write for The Caregiver Space, a nonprofit website. In addition, I speak to community groups on a variety of topics, with caregiving at the top of the list.

Thanks @mojo1965 It should work out OK and they are very thankful it was not worse. They all did OK, but were not as scared as they reported their golden retriever was! They kept saying 'we hope he doesn't know something to be scared about that we don't!

Scott