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April Fools Day and Night
Living with Lewy Body Disease
by Teepa Snow, MS, OTR/L, FAOTA
Of all the dementia conditions, Lewy Body Disease (LBD) is the most like playing April Fools with someone you are trying to live with. However, this roommate keeps popping up with new surprises that can be funny or simply can be scary depending on where you are in that moment, and what the SURPRISE is this time. LBD creates the greatest sense that:
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someone is deliberately lying to someone else
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someone is choosing to not do things that
they can
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someone is being ridiculous about not
smelling or smelling odd smells
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someone needs to sleep, and they won't
versus can't
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extreme changes in abilities and behaviors
can happen in moments
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evening and nights can last forever and are
scary
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Lauren with a Side of Lewy
Perspectives of Living with Lewy Body Dementia
by Lauren U, PAC Core Team
A few years ago, I was confident and independent. Now I cannot trust my own reality. My judgement is extremely compromised. I still have my sense of humor but find it difficult to know whether others are serious or joking. It's easier to stay quiet. If you smile, I will try to smile back. If you nod or shake your head, I will try to do the same. If I trust you, it will be completely. That's a lot of responsibility for you.
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by Leslie Carney, LCSW,
PAC Outreach Administrative Coordinator
Halt. Take a Pause. Step back. These are things we rarely get to do when we are a care partner. Any caregiving situation that involves chronicity can be hard, but being the primary care partner for someone living with dementia can be even more difficult. Even if our loved one is in a facility, and we are not doing the 24/7 physical care, chances are we are still expending a tremendous amount of emotional, physical, and spiritual care energy.
H.A.L.T. What does that mean? Hungry. Angry. Lonely. Tired. Recognize these words? At various times they may encompass your entire world and it is easy to lose perspective. Dementia and other chronic illnesses can make your life and world feel very small.
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Upcoming Certification Courses
Trainer
Help Others Gain Awareness and Knowledge
June 7, 2018 - Salt Lake City, UT
July 2, 2018 - United Kingdom
August 2, 2018 - Boston, MA
August 22, 2018 - Edmonton, AB
August 30, 2018 - Denver, CO
September 20, 2018 - Cincinnati, OH
November 1, 2018 - Phoenix, AZ
Consultant
Guide Others Through Challenging Situations
June 21, 2018 - Minneapolis, MN
September 27, 2018 - Richmond, VA
Coach
Guide Others in Hands-On Skill Building
July 2, 2018 - United Kingdom
July 26, 2018 - Denver, CO
August 15, 2018 - Chelsea, MI
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Dinner with Andy Griffith
Perspectives from a Family/Professional Care Partner
by Aimee Jo Mattson
Senior Care Professional & Family Care Partner
I am an experienced executive in the senior care industry; I know how to live in the moment when faced with the challenge of dementia. My mother-in-law (with dementia) moved in two months ago, and suddenly I can't put into practice the wisdom that I've shared hundreds of times in my career. The patient mentor that I am at work, turns into something completely different when I walk through the door at home each evening.
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Greet Before You Treat!
Click here and place your order today!
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Getting to Yes with an Invitation and a Song
by Mary Sue Wilkinson,
Founder - Singing Heart to Heart
Dorothy was a plump, round woman with a ready smile, a contagious laugh, and a beautiful singing voice. She delighted in anything funny and could always cheer me up by her mere presence. Her sense of rhythm was impeccable and she would bounce in her chair to the beat of the music. Given the opportunity, she would dance.
Dorothy's dementia had not robbed her of language but her conversations were sometimes hard to follow. She drove her housemate Velma nuts when she would go on and on about her dog Sunshine or how she had just been at the hospital or how her son had gotten her special shoes. None of which were fully true in the moment but held kernels of true memories for Dorothy and as such were of great value.
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Keep the Connection
A Meditation
by Reverend Linn Possell,
PAC Lead Mentor Coach
We are hard wired to be in relationships with one another. I once read that loneliness increases our odds of dying early by 45%. This does not change when we are diagnosed with dementia. And when one of our family members is diagnosed with dementia, the entire family is affected. We are affected emotionally, physically, financially, and spiritually. Some of this comes directly from the brain changes but some come from the response of those around us.
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A Tribute to Susan Suchan
by Lauren U,
PAC Core Team
This has been an incredibly sad year for me so far. One of my very best friends, a woman I love dearly, lost her life to cancer and FTD. Susan, I miss you so much. This time without you here has already been far too long and I know it's only the beginning. Every day, often several times a day, I find myself eager to "tell Susan." I think, "Susan is going to love this!," or I calm myself with the knowledge that "Susan and I will figure this out." And then, again, I am struck by the reminder that my Susan is gone.
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May 16, 2018
June 13, 2018
July 25, 2018
September 12, 2018
October 17, 2018
December 5, 2018
All broadcasts will air from 7:00pm - 8:30pm ET.
Recordings from these events will be available following the live broadcasts. For more info, please contact
Corrie Phillips.
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Dementia: The Disease of Our Time
A Traveling Exhibit of Great Americans Lost to Dementia
by Deb Selsavage,
PAC Certified Independent Consultant
My company, Coping with Dementia LLC, offers training for both professional and family caregivers. I was trained and certified by Teepa in 2015, and all of our curricula are based on Teepa Snow's Positive Approach® to Care. We are also great believers in Teepa's slogan, "Until there is a cure, there's care."
I spend a lot of my time at free speaking engagements to improve public awareness of Alzheimers and dementia. During 2017 alone, I spoke to more than 60 churches, businesses, and civic organizations with a combined audience of just under 1,600 people. This earned my company a "Health Care Hero" award for community outreach in Citrus County, Florida.
Last year my partner, Ed Youngblood, hatched an idea to build an easy-to-assemble traveling photo exhibit with images and information about great Americans who have succumbed to dementia.
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A Community with a Mission
Highlighting the Work of Bay Bluffs
by Reverend Linn Possell & Leslie Finkley,
PAC Communities Team
Bay Bluffs is a community with a mission. Their mission is to create the kind of culture change that lasts. The Leadership of Bay Bluffs are fully invested in this mission and have a focused and goal oriented plan that includes  interdisciplinary support, role modeling, and sustainability. This community is very aware of their strengths and where they would like to try to make changes, which also helped to provide a clear picture of the possibilities for growth. Trying new things is not new to Bay Bluffs. They have been successful before in piloting programs in small areas in order to be able to see what changes may be beneficial before bringing it to the rest of the community. The Leaders of Bay Bluffs have committed to a Six Month Comprehensive Team Training and have made a lot of progress.
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Why Isn't There a Cure or Treatment for Dementia?
PAC Research Corner
by Beth A. D. Nolan, PhD,
PAC Director of Research & Policy
A recent Washington Post article outlined some of the issues facing the field of dementia; we will look at these through the Positive Approach® lens.
It's been a tough year in the world of experimental drug research on dementia. On January 8th, pharmaceutical giant Pfizer announced it was ending its research efforts to develop new drugs for both Alzheimers and Parkinsons diseases. The next day, a study published in a leading medical journal, JAMA, reported yet another experimental drug failure. In late September of 2017, Axovant Sciences, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company that focuses on neurologic conditions, announced the clinical trial of its investigational drug for patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease (AD) had failed to show improvement for either motor function or cognition.
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When someone is living in the moment and driven by sensory needs while being victim to sensory intolerance, life is a challenge, having relationships are hard, and getting anything done can seem impossible. This session will help build skills in figuring out what is driving the behavior of the moment and offer alternatives that have potential to flip a switch.
Finding the just right experiences and having options and alternatives available at all times takes a lot out of care supporters. This session will help develop a tool chest and activity box collection to have on hand. You will have to bring your curiosity and flexibility!
In this session, Lewy Body Dementia will be front and center. We will discuss this most missed and misdiagnosed dementia. Part of the session will help to recognize the possible presence of LBD. The rest of the session will focus on strategies to live life with this fluctuating mystery guest.
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Upcoming Events
April 20, 2018
Rocky Mount, NC
April 25, 2018
Huntsville, AL
April 30, 2018
Topeka, KS
May 1, 2018
Salina, KS
May 2, 2018
Wichita, KS
May 10, 2018
Teepa's Knowledge Intensive: Workshop I
Detroit, MI
May 11, 2018
May 22, 2018
Saratoga Springs, NY
May 24, 2018
Maumee, OH
June 4, 2018
St. Louis, MO
June 7, 2018
Salt Lake City, UT
June 12, 2018
Auburndale, MA
June 21, 2018
Minneapolis, MN
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Now Accepting Submissions
Do you have a story to share?
Your stories help us learn and
grow. We cannot do what we do without you!
This is an open invitation to all people living with dementia, care partners, and professionals.
Contact us
today if you would like to submit an article or video for the
Online Dementia Journal.
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Book your event today for staff training, family nights, professional referral source events, or refresher workshops
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Would you like your staff to be able to learn from Teepa Snow, 24/7?
is now offering Teepa Snow programs on its Group Training Website!
Each of your staff members can get their own online video account, with videos selected by you!
Be their "Online Group Leader" and monitor their activity, course completion, and quiz results* (where applicable).
Click below to learn more!
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Be Brave Enough To Start A Conversation That Matters
CLICK HERE
To Learn More
About
Caring Conversations
and the
Caring Conversations
Tool Kit
Upcoming Events:
June 12, 2018
Auburndale, MA
(CEs available for Nurses and Social Workers)
October 17th, 2018
SAVE THE DATE!
Portsmith, NH
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PAC Training increases awareness, knowledge, and confidence among care staff and educates resident families.
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Come by and visit PAC's Booth #1202 at the 2018 AOTA Annual Conference & Expo on April 19 - 22 in Salt Lake City! We are excited about making connections with a multitude of new and seasoned Occupational Therapists!
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Becoming Dementia Aware
Would you like to learn how to begin changing your approach and interactions to better serve those living with dementia?
Learn from the comfort of your own home! Sign up today to experience Becoming Dementia Aware. In this three hour online course, Teepa takes you through the areas of the brain affected by dementia and introduces skills and strategies for better ways to care.
The course is broken down into nine sections and includes the following topics: Diving Deeper into Dementia, Better Ways to Care, Seeing and Responding to the Changes, Greet Before You Treat, Positive Physical Approach (PPA), Skills In Depth, After PPA, Caring for All, and Content Review
Whether you're a professional or family care partner, this content will help you begin to change your approach with people living with dementia.
Enrollment Fee: $100
After completing the course, you have the option of signing up for remote/virtual coaching with a PAC Mentor to help reinforce the newly learned content and practice Positive Physical Approach™ and Hand-under-Hand®.
Mentoring Fee: $65/hour
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Teepa Snow,
Today's Voice for Dementia
Teepa is an advocate for those living with dementia and has made it her personal mission to help families and professionals better understand how it feels to be living with dementia related challenges and change. Her company, Positive Approach, LLC was founded in 2005 and offers education to family and professional care partners all over the world. Her goal? Making a difference...one mind at a time.
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Click Here to access the
Online Dementia Journal archives!
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