treatment or prevention ideas

Unfortunately my mother's insecurities when she was well have really surfaced in this disease. My mom is very afrais of people and is so paranoid that you can't get her to cooperate with doing anything that requires a question ... its terrible.

Worse ... I've tried calling her now for almost a week at all different hours and no one is answering. I'm going to have to attempt to clear my business overload more like put it on hold and make arrangements for my daughter and hit the road to get out there.

PLEASE PRAY!

Is your grandmother on any of the medications for Alzheimer's (Aricept, Namenda, etc.)? Although they are not a cure, they do slow down the progression of the disease. Also, any mind stimulating games work. Unfortunately, just providing them doesn't usually work; someone needs to be there to work with her on the puzzles, word games, etc.

Also, does she live alone? Isolation and sensory deprivation cause their own problems and lead to a faster decline. Staying connected socially is important. If she was active at church, at a senior center, with a group of friends, Kiwanas, etc. it is important that she continue to stay involved on some level.

Keeping the mind active and involved helps everyone to be more mentally healthy, so it only stands to reason that it is also important for a person with Alzheimers.

My husband and I were just talking about this yesterday. Daddy (88 and AD) used to sit in a chair and not interact at all. Following a suggestion from my brother, I bought Daddy a word search puzzle book (he used to work them a lot and then ???). He loved them (again) and worked them feverishly (a whole book every couple of weeks). A few months later, I bacame his and Mama's DPOA; then Mama passed away and he came to live with my husband and me. We have never let him run out of word search puzzle books. He has improved so much in the two years that he has now been with us. Is the improvement due to mind stimulation, the change in environment, better health practices, better diet or some combination of all of the above? We don't know, but we believe it is all of the above, I also know that he's a lot more like the man that raised me. The disease is marching on, though, we can see it, but for now all is well and we have so much to be thankful for.

Hello Mcbivens and everyone. I work with families and people dealing with Alzheimer's. I am not a nurse, just a "break" when a caregiver or the person suffering needs one. With that said, I have noticed that mind building helps not so much because of the disease but just the isolation and depression. Some Alzheimer's clients know me but not their own children. I usually go in the home once a week. That's seven days with no contact. But I get my smile and my oh I'm getting a bath today lol. How I know they know me is I sing a certain song. I hum it or sing the entire time I'm there. When I enter in the home my greeting is my song being hummed or I am greeted with song. Painting helps those that do not like touch.Talking about anything and nothing helps with depression.I even use plants- Deadhead mums, It takes no thought, just repeated "now" action. I think because I am remembered even if it's not by name, memory stimulation makes some difference. Medically not so, but in my heart I'll choose to believe that somewhere in there I can touch a heart that can't tell me.

For all those caregivers and those who givea "break" to the caregivers, GOD BLESS YOU.

thank you all so much for your responses.