Tips for Finding a Caregiver

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Press the play button to listen to the audio file, "Tips for Finding a Caregiver for a Person with Alzheimer's Disease."

More Than 101 Helpful Tips, Advice, Stories, and Words Of Encouragement and Inspiration For Family, Friends and Caregivers of People Living With Alzheimer's Disease Written by a woman who has experienced first-hand the caregiving involved with a family member suffering from Alzheimer's Disease, Making Life with Alzheimer's Easier offers time-saving advice, hope and inspiration.  Author Lianna Marie sincerely wants to help others who find themselves in the same situation ... and not only that, she gives updates, gifts and a 100% money-back guarantee for her book.  Your purchase helps others.  A portion of each and every sale is donated to Alzheimer's research.   Making Life with Alzheimer's Easier - immediate download

One of the most dreaded diseases in old age is Alzheimer’s disease. Although unlike cancer and heart problem, this is actually not fatal. In fact, people with Alzheimer’s can live for a long time with proper care. That is actually the problem most of the time.

The Challenge of Caring for a Loved One Suffering from Alzheimer's

With Alzheimer’s disease, the patient needs to be taken care of all the time. This is because the memory loss will often render the patient incapable of thinking and reasoning. Some will even forget how to do the simplest of tasks, like brushing their teeth and even eating with a spoon and fork.

Alzheimer’s is a progressive and degenerative disease that affects the brain. The problem often leads to massive memory loss not only in terms of one’s memories but also one’s learning. Patients will forget everything that they have learned, including routine tasks that they have learned when they were just tots. Some people will also find it hard to learn new things and may even lose their language abilities. They will have difficulties in their speech and in their writing.

Because of this, caring for a patient with Alzheimer’s disease can be extremely difficult. It is actually like caring for a newborn babe but while a baby will slowly learn to function independently, patients with Alzheimer’s will lose what they have learned and will slowly become more and more dependent with their caregivers. Thus, it is important to find a caregiver that is both professionally-capable and caring as they will determine the progress that the patient will have as well as their over all condition and behavior.

Here are some tips in finding a good caregiver for an Alzheimer’s patient.

Get Professional Care for Your Loved One

It is good to look for a person who is already well experienced in caring for people with Alzheimer’s. Not only will their experience come in handy when it comes to dealing with the patient’s medicines and medical routines, they will also be more patient because of prior knowledge.

One problem in hiring professional people is the expense. Private nurses and caregivers are expensive enough as it is without adding the burden of a specialization. If you just cannot afford to hire someone with enough experience, try one who has worked with old people and then give him or her materials that will make them familiar with the basics of the disease.

Choose Someone You Know

Nothing beats hiring someone who you already know or someone who you have already seen working. Patients with Alzheimer’s will have a lot of quirks and behavior that can be extremely irritating and difficult to deal with. Thus, it is important that you choose someone that you know will have a lot of patience and care.

Of course, if a member of the family can spare the time for the patient, that is good. If not, you can ask for recommendations from people that you know. Chances are they know someone who can take care of a patient with Alzheimer’s.

Choose Someone Strong

Although this is actually not a major issue, it is also important that you choose someone who can deal with the patient and the often back breaking tasks. Remember that because the patient is full- dependent on the person, they will sometimes need to carry them or guide them when walking.

Next Up:  Choosing an Alzheimer's Care Facility