Some Favorite Authors Write about Alzheimer’s

Authors Write about Alzheimer’s

Some of our favorite authors, including Five Authors who write about Alzheimer’s have banned together and determined to inform others about Alzheimer’s. They are discussing what keeps folks silent when they need help and how to raise the awareness about the plight of so many Caregivers.

Since November is National Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month and National Caregiver Appreciation Month, these Five authors have taken the challenge to raise awareness about the disease and the Caregivers who help our loved ones.

They each want others to know the importance of memory checks and awareness about Alzheimer’s. Most of all they want others to understand and know the contribution that the Caregiver makes in the lives of those who have Alzheimer’s.

Each of the Authors, including: Marianne Sciucco, Jean Lee, Vicki Tapia, Shannon Wierzbitsky  present Five Stories about Alzheimer’s and offer the opportunity for others to Enter a giveaway to win a paperback copy of each of their books: Alzheimer’s Authors Giveaway

Meet the authors on Facebook: Alzheimer’s Authors Ending the Isolation of Alzheimer’s

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12 Ways to Reach Out to Caregivers During National Caregivers Appreciation Month

by Marianne Sciucco, author of Blue Hydrangeas, an Alzheimer’s love story

Chances are you know someone caring for an ill or disabled loved one.

This could be due to an illness such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, cancer, stroke, or a variety of other conditions. Some provide live-in care, others visit daily or weekly, and some oversee care from a distance or care provided by hired aides or a nursing facility.

No matter how the caregiver performs his or her role, caregiving is a tough job, requiring resources that are often scarce: time, money, support, and assistance.

The CDC tells us that more than 34 million unpaid caregivers provide care to someone age 18 and older who is ill or has a disability, and an estimated 21 percent of US households are impacted by caregiving responsibilities.

Almost all of this work is unpaid, typically provided by family members, and often performed around the clock with no breaks. In addition, many caregivers juggle other responsibilities such as jobs, raising children, and managing their own households.

November is National Caregivers Appreciation Month, and a great time to reach out to those providing care and help lighten their load.

In recognition of those who work tirelessly and selflessly to care for a loved one, here are 12 ways to reach out to caregivers, to offer assistance and let them know you care. These people need support, and often that support doesn’t cost much, if anything, and takes little time.

1. Ask if you can sit for them a little while so they can run errands, take a break, see the doctor, or attend church or a caregiver’s support group, whatever they need to do to take care of themselves.
2. Going to the grocery store? Call and ask if there’s anything you can pick up for them.
3. If your employer allows, donate paid sick time, vacation days, or personal time to a coworker caring for a relative who is hospitalized or needs post-hospital care.
4. Volunteer to mow the lawn, weed the garden, rake the leaves, or shovel the snow.
5. Share the bounty, whether from your vegetable or your flower garden. Fresh produce and fresh flowers are cheerful.
6. If you have the skills and tools, offer to change the oil in their car and rotate the tires.
7. Again, if you have the skills and tools, offer a free haircut to the caregiver and/or their loved one.
8. Walk their dog.
9. Ask if they’d like you to wash and clean out their car.
10. Volunteer to take out the trash and bring the barrels out to the curb on trash day.
11. Double cook a meal, preferably one of their favorites, and send over a dinner.
12. Include them in your prayers.

For more information about caregiving and caregivers please follow #AlzAuthors during National Caregivers Appreciation Month, November 2015, or find us on Facebook.

About the Author

Marianne Sciucco is not a nurse who writes but a writer who happens to be a nurse. A lover of words and books, she dreamed of becoming an author when she grew up, but became a nurse to avoid poverty. She later brought her two passions together and writes about the intricate lives of people struggling with health and family issues. Her debut novel, Blue Hydrangeas, an Alzheimer’s love story, is a Kindle bestseller, IndieReader Approved, a BookWorks featured book, and winner of IndieReCon’s Best Indie Novel Award, 2014. A native Bostonian, she lives in New York’s Hudson Valley, and when not writing works as a campus nurse at a community college. She can be reached via her website, Facebook, and Twitter.

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