Help for Children & Teens

Help for Children & Teens

When children or teens learn that a parent, grandparent, relative, friend or neighbor is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, they may experience a range of feelings.  Common reactions include:

n  Sadness about changes in the person’s personality and behavior

n  Confusion about how people develop the disease and why the person behaves differently

n  Resentment or fear over person’s behavioral changes

n  Fear that they or their parents might develop the disease

n  Anger or frustration caused by the need to repeat activities or questions

n  Anxiety about how the disease affects the family

n  Guilt about getting angry or becoming short-tempered with the person

n  Loneliness, jealousy or resentment due to the additional time and attention given to the person

n  Embarrassment about having friends or other visitors observing the person behaving differently. 

When discussing Alzheimer’s with young people, it is important to take the time to listen carefully and encourage them to ask questions and express their thoughts and feelings.  Offer comfort and support and let them know that their feelings and questions are normal.  Your honest responses can make an enormous difference in easing fears and anxiety.

Younger Onset Alzheimer’s

What does it mean when someone says they have “younger onset Alzheimer’s?”  Anyone diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease under the age of 65 is considered to have younger onset.  Disturbingly, there have been adults diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in their 30’s, 40’s and 50’s.  According to the Alzheimer’s Association, 50% of individuals with Alzheimer’s nationwide have younger onset.  Much more common is late onset Alzheimer’s, when someone receives a diagnosis after the age of 65.

While being diagnosed or caring for someone with Alzheimer’s presents challenges no matter what one’s age, receiving a diagnosis at a younger age presents unique concerns.  Questions like:  Will I have to quit my job?  Does my young child understand what’s going on?  How will my parents, friends and family react to this?  What resources are available?  All are serious issues to grapple with.  The good news is that families facing these issues do not have to face them alone!  The Alzheimer’s Association would like to invite individuals caring for someone with younger onset Alzheimer’s disease to attend our ongoing monthly Younger Onset Caregiver Support Groups.

I also want to share that the Alzheimer’s Association has been a tremendous support to me, and even with all my daily challenges, I still continue to receive their help.  I regret, when I first began to notice symptoms of Alzheimer’s, I didn’t do much about them.  I passed it off as something I could deal with when I became much older.

But then my words started going away, and I couldn’t think of people’s names.  When it became difficult to write I decided I needed to see a doctor.  He prescribed medicine and put me through a battery of tests.  The last test, a PT Scan resulted in the diagnosis—Alzheimer ’s disease.  We now know that my grandmother on my dad’s side had Alzheimer’s.  I wish I would have known that earlier—my life may have been different than it is now.

Karen,  Thank You for your help!

"Meu 10 Mandamentos"

No Outono de 2011 a Associação de Alzheimer enviou uma newsletter. Eu olhei através dela rápido, mas realmente não lê-lo. Na primeira página, vi o título "My 10 Mandamentos" e eu pensei que eu vou ler mais tarde e eu não.
Na semana passada, o boletim para a Primavera de 2012 saiu. O boletim de 2011 foi na minha mesa e eu estava indo para jogá-lo fora e então eu realmente vi e leia os Mandamentos. Uau, isso é tão bom. Eu tenho que compartilhar isso com outras pessoas. Para aqueles que têm ALZ, continue lendo mais e mais. Nós ainda estamos vivos!
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"Meu 10 Mandamentos" para aqueles com ALZAutor: John D. MacInnesDiagnosticado com a doença de Alzheimer em 2006
Isso aconteceu em uma estranha maneira, talvez, em um sonho não estou certo. No outro dia, enquanto remando minha canoa, semelhante a uma miniatura Arca-no Lago Huron, as nuvens se abriram e uma tábua de argila caiu na canoa.Esculpido em comprimido que foram estas palavras:
1. Quando você é diagnosticado com ALZ, não entre em pânico, há muitas doenças mais nojentas que você tem.
2. Procurar o melhor Neurologista na cidade e ficar com ele ou ela.
3. Entre em contato com a Associação de Alzheimer. Ouvir as suas palestras, participar de um grupo de apoio, e se envolver.
4. Informe-se lendo livros sobre ALZ e do cérebro. O melhor para mim era "doença de Alzheimer a partir da Inside Out", de Richard Taylor.
5. Não compre uma cadeira de balanço ou ocultar fora da sala para trás. Fique em contato com sua família, amigos, eo mundo ao seu redor.
6. Voluntários como um advogado ALZ. Estenda a mão, falar e educar os desinformados sobre ALZ.
7. Vai com Deus. Coma alimentos saudáveis, exercício - nada melhor do que caminhar.Use uma pulseira de alerta médico ou Dog Tag apenas no caso você pode "passear".
8. Receba seus assuntos financeiros e legais em ordem com a assistência de um advogado bom cuidado ao idoso.
9. Desfrute a vida concentrando-se em suas esperanças e sonhos - não o fato de que você tem uma doença debilitante.
10. Relaxe e lembre-se todas as lembranças maravilhosas que encheram sua vida e ser grato por uma vida plenamente vivida.

 Eu acredito nestes "10 Mandamentos" e recomendá-los a todos aqueles que lidam com a doença de Alzheimer.
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Obrigado, John D. Maclnnes, você tem nos abençoado.

“My 10 Commandments”

In the Fall of 2011 the Alzheimer’s Association sent out a newsletter. I looked through it fast but did not really read it. On the front page I saw the title “My 10 Commandments” and I thought that I will read it later and I didn’t.

Last week the newsletter for Spring 2012 came out. The 2011 newsletter was on my table and I was going to throw it away and then I really saw and read the Commandments. Wow, this is so good. I have to share this with others. For those that have ALZ, keep reading over and over. We are still alive!

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“My 10 Commandments” for those with ALZ

Author:  John D. MacInnes

Diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2006

This came about in a strange way-perhaps, in a dream-I’m not certain. The other day, while paddling my canoe-similar to a miniature Ark-on Lake Huron, the clouds parted and a clay tablet fell into the canoe.

Chiseled into that tablet were these words:

1.  When you are diagnosed with ALZ, don’t panic-there are lots of nastier diseases you have.

2.  Search out the best Neurologist in town and stick with him or her.

3.  Contact the Alzheimer’s Association. Listen to their lectures, join a support group, and get involved.

4.  Inform yourself by reading books about ALZ and the brain. The best for me was “Alzheimer’s from the Inside Out” by Richard Taylor.

5.  Don’t buy a rocking chair or hide out of the back room. Stay in touch with your family, friends, and the world around you.

6.  Volunteer as an ALZ Advocate. Reach out, speak out and educate the uninformed about ALZ.

7.  Take care of yourself. Eat healthy foods; exercise – nothing better than walking. Wear a Medic Alert bracelet or Dog Tag just in case you may “wander.”

8.  Get your financial and legal affairs in order with the assistance of a good elder care attorney.

9.  Enjoy life by focusing on your hopes and dreams – not the fact that you have a debilitating disease.

10.  Relax and remember all the wonderful memories that have filled your life and be thankful for a life fully lived.

 I believe in these “10 Commandments” and recommend them to all those dealing with Alzheimer’s.

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Thank You, John D. Maclnnes, you have blessed us.