National Alzheimer’s Awareness Month – What Everyone Needs to Know

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) November 16, 2009 -- National Alzheimer’s Awareness Month – What Everyone Needs to Know

November, National Alzheimer’s Awareness Month, gives everyone a chance all over the country to get into the act and raise awareness of this dreadful disease. When speaking of raising awareness of Alzheimer’s Disease, two questions come to mind immediately: Why? Why do we need to raise awareness of Alzheimer’s Disease and What can I do to help?

The answer to the first question would be to get the caregiver support services we need and the proper treatment and services for the person with the disease. There are over 3,000 discussion topics on the Alzheimer Spouse Message Boards at www.thealzheimerspouse.com , and many of them deal with the lack of understanding of the disease from family, friends, and ALL healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, psychiatrists, psychologists, EMT’s, and nursing home aides.

When healthcare professionals, particularly primary care doctors, are basically ignorant about the early symptoms, and brush them off as “normal aging” or in a younger patient, everything from depression to menopause, precious time is lost in getting proper treatment. Alzheimer specialists unanimously agree that it is CRUICIAL to educate primary care doctors and other health professionals about Alzheimer’s Disease. The earlier the disease is diagnosed, the better chance the patient will have increased “quality years” of life with medication, meaningful activities and travel, an ability to be included in “advance directive” planning, and socialization. Precious years are often lost because of misdiagnosis and incorrect medication. Years of stress, anxiety, confusion, and worsening symptoms that need not occur if the proper diagnosis is timely. It is true that there IS NO CURE for Alzheimer’s Disease, but there is TREATMENT that can slow the symptoms for a prolonged quality of life.

When family members and friends do not understand the seriousness and complexity of the disease, the caregiver is left bearing the burden alone. It is mental, emotional, and physical torture, which often leads to the caregiver’s own health problems. We who are living with spouses and family members with this disease understand that it is not just a “memory problem”. We know that it is a fatal, brain destruction disease, and we need help not only caring for our spouses or family members with AD; we need help caring for ourselves. We need respite. We need help with arduous physical tasks of bathing and changing. And we need funding for this help.

To answer the second question – what can YOU do? Plenty.

For those who have neither the time nor the interest in getting out into the community face to face, there is e-mail and the telephone. If everyone reading this, sent ONE e-mail or made ONE phone call to educate ONE person about the true nature of Alzheimer’s Disease – that it is not just a memory problem, that it is a fatal brain destruction disease; that it destroys relationships and the caregiver’s emotional and physical health – thousands more people will be touched. One phone call. One e-mail.

If you know nothing about Alzheimer’s Disease, log onto www.thealzheimerspouse.com and learn about it. Statistics say that you or someone you know will have Alzheimer’s Disease in your lifetime.

The Alzheimer’s Association website- www.alz.org -recommends:
Write Congress
Become an advocate
Sign up to be a champion

One of last year’s suggestions was to wear or carry something everyday that will encourage other’s to ask about Alzheimer’s Disease:

A purple ribbon – purple is the Alzheimer color.

Click on www.zazzle.com/joanspouse* to see custom designed items to raise awareness – travel mug; t-shirt; key chains; canvas bags, and more.

Join the spouses at www.thealzheimerspouse.com and help raise awareness of Alzheimer’s Disease in the month of November.

More information can be found online at http://www.thealzheimerspouse.com

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