Alzheimer’s Understanding the Challenges For Individuals and Families Written and Presented by: Polly Milligan Programs Manager at Inverness at Home Home Care Administrator

We could only imagine…. "The first thing you should know is that it's not that bad. Everybody thinks it's horrible, but it's not that bad." - Les "I got the diagnosis and I thought I was going to die, then I thought I might not." - Les "Not being sure of my diagnosis... I was so scared.... I didn't know which way to go." - Evelyn "Dementia... I hate that term." - Elizabeth "This is a major attack on your confidence. You think 'This isn't fair, why me?' It helps to talk to others who are going through the same thing -- to understand how they are experiencing it." - Gerrit

What now…. When you don’t know anything about something, who do you ask for help? “The greatest challenge to finding answers to "what to do " with our parents has been finding the appropriate people to help us. We really didn't know where to start at. There were so many different departments, which was confusing. To make matters worse, our parents were terrified that people would know they needed extra help.” daughter “It would have been nice for someone to give us a little steering about dementia and its likely progression.” daughter

Come and sit by me…let me help you understand….. We can offer so much from our knowledge, what’s more important is what we offer from our hearts:  Calm Understanding  Unbiased Resources  Open ears that are connected to an open heart.  Tireless devotion to helping them understand, and not condemning them when they don’t.

Thoughts from a daughter… “The most important tip I would give someone ten years behind me is to talk to their parents about how they want to live the end of their days. Do their parents have someone they want as their Power of Attorney, who do they trust with their finances, where do they want to live, do they want to be resuscitated, etc. Elderly people obsess about money, possessions, and safety. Let professional health care people help. When we try to do everything, we don't do anything very well. Everything cost 100 times more than we could have ever imagined.” daughter

Thank You for your time… My name is Polly Milligan, Programs Manager for Inverness at Home in Tulsa, OK. I am the mother of 7 children, fulltime graduate degree student, hopelessly devoted senior care associate, daughter of a Pentecostal preacher, wife of 17 years, I love to read, learn, and most of all care for others.