Alive with Alzheimer's [Hardcover]

Cathy Stein Greenblat (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2004 | ISBN-10: 0226306585 | ISBN-13: 978-0226306582 | Edition: 1

The confusion, losses, and devastation of Alzheimer's disease are familiar to the millions of Americans suffering from the disease and to their family members. Understandably, declining abilities and changing personal characteristics shape our picture of the disease, leading some to refer to the "double death" of Alzheimer's in which the sufferer drifts away long before his or her eventual physical end.

This small, tender volume of 85 photographs and accompanying discussion powerfully shows the limitations of this view. Cathy Stein Greenblat, an internationally respected sociologist and photographer, demonstrates in Alive with Alzheimer's that, while the ravages of the disease are real, Alzheimer's sufferers can do more than survive, they can thrive. Her images, interviews, and observations attest to the possibility of their being "alive" with Alzheimer's far beyond the expectations of the general public and even of many physicians with long experience with the disease.

Greenblat offers a new vision, taking us into a world of life-enhancing institutional care. Nursing homes and similar facilities don't have to be a last resort; as Greenblat shows, with a dedicated and experienced staff and an enriched environment (that includes respect, choices, pets, and music), extraordinary changes can be effected in Alzheimer's patients. Alive with Alzheimer's, the first photographic book on the disease, offers hope and inspiration. Moreover, its vivid, impressive evidence that ongoing stimulation in a good institutional setting can sustain Alzheimer's patients at a far higher level than is generally believed has significant implications for personal and policy decisions.

The new standard of care chronicled in Alive with Alzheimer's will provide hope and inspiration to those touched by the disease. As Dr. Enid Rockwell writes in her Afterword to Greenblat's moving book, "These photographs are extraordinary for practitioners, for family members, for everyone to see what's going on with these people. The stimulation pictured in this book is more powerful than any medication that we will have in our lifetime. . . . They so vividly show us that there are people inside these bodies, people with personalities, who experience emotion, and they show that there is life after Alzheimer's."

Editorial Reviews

Review

"These photographs are extraordinary for practitioners, for family members, for everyone to see what's going on with these people. The stimulation pictured in this book is more powerful than any medication that we will have in our lifetime.... They so vividly show us that there are people inside these bodies, people with personalities, who experience emotion, and they show that there is life after Alzheimer's." - Enid Rockwell, M.D., from the Afterword"

From the Inside Flap

The confusion, losses, and devastation of Alzheimer's disease are familiar to the millions of Americans suffering from the disease and to their family members. Understandably, declining abilities and changing personal characteristics shape our picture of the disease, leading some to refer to the "double death" of Alzheimer's in which the sufferer drifts away long before his or her eventual physical end.

This small, tender volume of 85 photographs and accompanying discussion powerfully shows the limitations of this view. Cathy Stein Greenblat, an internationally respected sociologist and photographer, demonstrates in Alive with Alzheimer's that, while the ravages of the disease are real, Alzheimer's sufferers can do more than survive, they can thrive. Her images, interviews, and observations attest to the possibility of their being "alive" with Alzheimer's far beyond the expectations of the general public and even of many physicians with long experience with the disease.

Greenblat offers a new vision, taking us into a world of life-enhancing institutional care. Nursing homes and similar facilities don't have to be a last resort; as Greenblat shows, with a dedicated and experienced staff and an enriched environment (that includes respect, choices, pets, and music), extraordinary changes can be effected in Alzheimer's patients. Alive with Alzheimer's, the first photographic book on the disease, offers hope and inspiration. Moreover, its vivid, impressive evidence that ongoing stimulation in a good institutional setting can sustain Alzheimer's patients at a far higher level than is generally believed has significant implications for personal and policy decisions.

The new standard of care chronicled in Alive with Alzheimer's will provide hope and inspiration to those touched by the disease. As Dr. Enid Rockwell writes in her Afterword to Greenblat's moving book, "These photographs are extraordinary for practitioners, for family members, for everyone to see what's going on with these people. The stimulation pictured in this book is more powerful than any medication that we will have in our lifetime. . . . They so vividly show us that there are people inside these bodies, people with personalities, who experience emotion, and they show that there is life after Alzheimer's."

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 125 pages
• Publisher: University Of Chicago Press; 1 edition (March 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0226306585
• ISBN-13: 978-0226306582
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 8.8 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,387,312 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I am a Professor Emerita of Sociology at Rutgers University where I served for 35 years as a member of the Department of Sociology, Women's Studies, and the Bloustein School of Planning. The author of 14 books and more than 100 articles, I lectured in the USA, Latin America, Eastern and Western Europe, Russia, Africa, the Philippines, China, and Japan. Since 2002 when I retired from Rutgers, I have been engaged in a cross-cultural photographic project on aging, dementia, and end of life care. I am an Artist in Residence at the University Hospital Network (CHU) of Nice, France and an Honorary Research Fellow at the International Observatory on End of Life Care, Lancaster University, UK. My second photo-driven book, LOVE, LOSS, AND LAUGHTER: Seeing Alzheimer's DIfferently is about to be published, and I am excited about it!

Photography has been a passion for me since I was a teenager and I saw the Family of Man exhibit at the MoMA. I didn't have much time to DO photography, but I went to exhibits, read books, developed a strong belief that there were things that people could better understand through visual images than through text. I also believed (and still do) that the mix of words and images is the most powerful. My first photo-driven book, ALIVE WITH ALZHEIMER'S, published by the University of Chicago Press in 2004 was my initial attempt to create such a marriage: not words to caption my photos, nor photos to illustrate my text, but a document that made the two partners. I think it worked, but the new book, LOVE, LOSS, AND LAUGHTER goes much farther, also combining my interest in international perspectives. I hope you like it!

While I was at Rutgers I had visiting research and teaching appointments at the University of New Hampshire, Princeton University's Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton, and the Rutgers Medical School (now UMDNJ). In addition, I had a number of short and medium term assignments from WHO, the World Bank, UNESCO, UNDP, IDRP and other public agencies as well as committee and contract assignments from the Ford Foundation, the National Institute of Health, the National Science Foundation, the Foundation for Science and Technology (Japan) the National Hemophilia Foundation and others. As you can see, I've long had a commitment to international perspectives!

I've also enjoyed lecturing, and now I ONLY give highly illustrated lectures which are even more fun and more rewarding. I've spoken to university audiences, specialized interest groups (e.g. psychiatric nurses, methodologists, visual sociologists) as well as to conference attendees, the general public and radio/TV audiences. I am eager to do such talks in the coming months.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars moving and helpful book, August 4, 2004

By 

Nancy S. Landale (State College, PA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Alive with Alzheimer's (Hardcover)

Alive With Alzheimer's is a moving pictorial portrayal of the lives of individuals with Alzheimer's who are living in an innovative residential setting in which the emphasis is on living rather than dying. The pictures do a wonderful job of showing the essential humanity of the victims of the illness, even those in the advanced stages. The text is insightful as well-- I read the book cover to cover twice and found it very uplifting. Definitely worthwhile, especially for those who have loved ones with dementia.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Alive With Alzheimer's, June 10, 2004

By 

Kerry Mills (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Alive with Alzheimer's (Hardcover)

This book was fantastic! It really captured life (real life) with this disease. In fact, it made me feel as though I knew the residents and was appreciating their quality of life along with them. I suppose working in the same setting encourages those thoughts. And, for those who have or are taking care of a loved one now, I imagine they also will be able to relate.

I, as a program director of Hearthstone Alzheimer Care, was encouraged to do better at my work, your book was refreshing. I got some ideas and was reminded the importance music has with this disease.

My sister, who has very little knowledge or interaction with people having this disease, read through the book and was touched.

The pictures really did say it all. I liked that you had a number of sequence pictures. I think the book shows the genuine reality of Silverado. The residents are happy, they are excited about life and engaged.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book will change your view of Alzheimer's, June 12, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Alive with Alzheimer's (Hardcover)

I read this book this week and was impressed with how well it captured the spirit of the residents and staff at Silverado. My father has lived there for about a year--my mother did too until her death in February--and the place is truly amazing. Just like the book describes, I have had many chances to sit and talk with residents who didn't at first seem able to carry on a conversation. But with patience and love, you can find a way to enther their world. With the recent death of President Reagan,people should use this book as an opportunity to see what the world of Alzheimer's is like. When I come to Silverado, it is not with the dread so many people feel when visiting a nursing home. Instead, I come into a place filled with love and always have occasion to share a laugh, dance with a resident, or sit and enjoy an ice cream with my father. It is a wonderful place, as the book makes so clear in both pictures and text, and I hope it will encourage other facilities to change their way of dealing with residents.