To the editor:
One in nine people over 65 has Alzheimer's or some type of dementia. According to the Alzheimer's Association, that number is expected to raise by 18.2 percent in the next 10 years. Who is taking care of people with dementia? Overwhelmingly, it is family and friends, not facilities.
Caring for someone with dementia is very difficult day-to-day. On top of that, people with dementia have situations that become crises.
Crises develop for many reasons. Sometimes it is because of delusions or hallucinations. Sometimes it is because the person is angry they are being stopped from doing what they have always done.
I have been working in Green County with individuals with dementia 14 years, and part of my role is to respond to the crises. Invariably, people believe that Wisconsin has a system in place for emergencies to provide secure, psychiatric treatment in a hospital. Since 2012, that has become illegal for people with dementia unless they agree to it. People with dementia cannot understand they need it.
The general public does not understand this. They believe that if things become dangerous enough, there is a system in place to make someone get the psychiatric care they need.
I am asking all those caring for loved ones with dementia to prepare yourselves the best you can for whatever may arise by seeking help now.
Contact the Aging & Disability Resource Center now. They are open Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. You can drop in at the Pleasant View Complex, N3152 Wisconsin 81, call 1-877-794-2372 or email at resourcecenter@gchsd.org. They can offer options on where to get support and give you insight on what other people are doing.
If you are helping someone with dementia, learn all you can about the disease now.
Develop a support network now. Even if the person does not need a lot of help yet, find people to help. It takes a team of support to keep someone with dementia in their home. The time to build that network is now.
Have a discussion with their doctor about medications now.
It may feel like you have time to worry about this later. It may feel like you have no time because of all of the caregiving you do now. Make time. You owe it to yourself and your loved one to be prepared.
One in nine people over 65 has Alzheimer's or some type of dementia. According to the Alzheimer's Association, that number is expected to raise by 18.2 percent in the next 10 years. Who is taking care of people with dementia? Overwhelmingly, it is family and friends, not facilities.
Caring for someone with dementia is very difficult day-to-day. On top of that, people with dementia have situations that become crises.
Crises develop for many reasons. Sometimes it is because of delusions or hallucinations. Sometimes it is because the person is angry they are being stopped from doing what they have always done.
I have been working in Green County with individuals with dementia 14 years, and part of my role is to respond to the crises. Invariably, people believe that Wisconsin has a system in place for emergencies to provide secure, psychiatric treatment in a hospital. Since 2012, that has become illegal for people with dementia unless they agree to it. People with dementia cannot understand they need it.
The general public does not understand this. They believe that if things become dangerous enough, there is a system in place to make someone get the psychiatric care they need.
I am asking all those caring for loved ones with dementia to prepare yourselves the best you can for whatever may arise by seeking help now.
Contact the Aging & Disability Resource Center now. They are open Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. You can drop in at the Pleasant View Complex, N3152 Wisconsin 81, call 1-877-794-2372 or email at resourcecenter@gchsd.org. They can offer options on where to get support and give you insight on what other people are doing.
If you are helping someone with dementia, learn all you can about the disease now.
Develop a support network now. Even if the person does not need a lot of help yet, find people to help. It takes a team of support to keep someone with dementia in their home. The time to build that network is now.
Have a discussion with their doctor about medications now.
It may feel like you have time to worry about this later. It may feel like you have no time because of all of the caregiving you do now. Make time. You owe it to yourself and your loved one to be prepared.
