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I think I'm in Denial: What helped you as a caregiver to accept?
I think I’m in denial. As I mentioned my husband was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in May. Prior to that the neurologist thought it was memory issues caused by previous head injuries. I’ve been going through the motions, doing all the right things. Met with the Alzheimer's resource center, he’s had 4 infusions, MRI and has tolerated them well with no side effects. He definitely has memory issues so I’m constantly made aware. I’ve scheduled some trips so we’re “living”. I try not to think about it as much and what our life will look like but..when I do I just have a hard time believing where we are headed, it makes me scared. I think the thing that makes it tough is we’re both in excellent health and very active. I quite don’t like this and there is nothing I can do. I’m curious if any of you have been where I am and if so what did you find worked for you. My intelligence knows it’s true.. my heart disagrees.
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@laneywj
For me, after the disbelief stage, I realized I needed some professional help.
Advice I received in one of my support groups was to find a therapist who specializes in working with caregivers.
My therapist is so popular I had to wait several months for an appointment and months before I can get another appointment. This will have to be okay, because I feel the wait is worth it since she's already helped me after 2 sessions.
All the best to you. 🌺
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1 Reaction@judimahoney as far as a therapist goes are you doing in person or virtual? I’m thinking maybe a grief counselor or is there a different specialty that you suggest? Thanks for responding.
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2 ReactionsJust know this is normal. There are stages Denial , Arguing/negotiating , Anger, Depression, Acceptance. The stages overlap and may re-occur. Get supportive help if you become overwhelmed. This is well known stuff for decades Elizabeth Kubler Ross. Really smart.
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2 Reactions@shmerdloff
Whoops!
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2 Reactions@laneywj
Hi again:
I have had 2 in-person sessions with my new therapist. The next 2 are scheduled to be virtual due to her busy schedule.
I am not sure of all of her specialties, I only paid attention to the caregiver specialty that I was seeking (when I was on the Provider Healthcare web page reading each counselor's specialties, she was the only one that had 'working with caregivers' as a specialty).
I feel processing the grief was a component of my sessions so far. I also took a 2-day, free online grief course that I felt helped a little.
Good luck to you as you find a good fit with a counselor or therapist.
Judi ☀️
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