When Someone You Love has Alzheimer's, The Caregiver's Journey [Hardcover]

Earl A. Grollman (Author), Kenneth S. Kosik (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 19, 1996

For all whose lives are touched by the devastation of Alzheimer's disease, When Someone You Love Has Alzheimer's offers guidance, comfort, and hope. This clear, compassionate guide explains: how Alzheimer's is diagnosed and what course it takes; how Alzheimer's affects memory, emotions, and behavior; which symptoms of Alzheimer's can be treated; the spiritual and emotional challenges that caregivers face; how to handle an Alzheimer patient's bizarre behavior; how to explain Alzheimer's to children; how to balance the patient's needs with your own; and when and where to seek help.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Were it presented solely in prose paragraphs, this exemplary adviser would be much shorter than it is. Instead, its first four chapters, which proceed through the stages of dealing with Alzheimer's disease and their effects on the caregiver, take the form of free verse. The device doesn't make poetry of the text but does give it greater weight, just as the same kind of text display gives weight to the words in advertisements. Rabbi Grollman, author of these four chapters, is a seasoned writer on dealing with life crises; his words--simple, realistic, reassuring--merit the burden laid on them by the verselike presentation. This is excellent counsel, full of phrases that many may take as watchwords as they cope with an Alzheimer's-afflicted loved one. To Grollman's chapters, research physician Kosik adds one of questions and answers about the disease and its sufferers. An annotated resource list concludes. Ray Olson

Review

A unique combination of sensitive spiritual support and up-to-date factual knowledge. —Dennis J. Selkoe, M.D., Harvard Medical School

"As one of millions who has suffered with a family member struck by Alzheimer's, I welcome this book's solace and advice for others on this difficult journey. While we hope and fight for a cure that lies in the future, it is also important to deal with the present-and this fine book is here to help." —Senator John D. Rockefeller IV (Democrat, West Virginia)

"Simple, realistic, reassuring. . . . This is excellent counsel." —Ray Olson, Booklist --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 163 pages
• Publisher: Beacon Press (December 19, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0807027200
• ISBN-13: 978-0807027202
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,846,020 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Dr. Earl A. Grollman, a pioneer in the field of crisis intervention, was rabbi of the Beth El Temple Center in Belmont, Massachusetts, for thirty-six years. A certified death educator and counselor, he was cited as "Hero of The Heartland" for his work with the families and volunteers of the Oklahoma City bombing. Dr. Grollman has spoken at many colleges, clergy institutes, seminaries, physicians' forums, and hospital nursing associations, and has addressed many support groups, such as Compassionate Friends, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, and Widows Personal Services. He has also appeared on national television and radio, including The Oprah Winfrey Show, Children's Journal, All Things Considered, and Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. Recently, he was featured on National Public Radio's End of Life series in the roundtable discussion on grief and bereavement.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Insight Into The Caregiver's Journey, October 12, 2006

By 

Virginia Allain "(retired librarian)" (Poinciana, FL) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: When Someone You Love Has Alzheimer's (Paperback)

You see chapter headings like: Accepting the Diagnosis, Beginning to Cope, Finding Support, Achieving Compassion, and Questions and Answers about Alzheimer's. My expectations were then for a factual book dealing with the emotional issues of the disease. It was a shock to open the pages and see the poetry format.

These might make good discussion starters for an Alzheimer's support group. Topics like grief or anger make the reader think about their reaction to the changes going on.

Probably I'd have given this more stars if the cover had prepared me for what was inside.