Ways to promote brain health and join the fight against Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia

Celebrity champions are going purple for brain health awareness!

Worldwide, more than 55 million people are living with Alzheimer's or another dementia. Take action now — for yourself, your loved ones and for the fight to end Alzheimer's. What actions can you commit to taking this month?

Whatever your age, now is the right time to take actions that help promote a healthy brain. Get familiar with brain health and learn what steps you can take if you or someone you love has memory concerns.

Incorporate some or all of these 10 Healthy Habits into your life and share them with someone you know. Start Now...

APS: Advocates say more education, support and patient services are needed



June is Antiphospholipid Syndrome Awareness Month. Say what??? Exactly. This is not a widely-talked-about condition. Founded in 2005, APS Foundation of America, Inc. is the only US nonprofit health agency dedicated to bringing national awareness to APS, a major cause of multiple miscarriages, thrombosis, strokes and heart attacks.

APS is an autoimmune disorder in which the body recognizes normal components of blood and cell membranes as foreign bodies and produces antibodies against them. Patients with these antibodies may experience blood clots, including heart attacks and strokes, and miscarriages. APS may occur in people with Lupus, other autoimmune diseases, or even in otherwise healthy individuals.

More about APS...

Pride Month: A look at disability through an LGBTQ+ lens

Societal norms pertaining to sexual orientation and gender identity, as well as norms around ability, often work to deny LGBTQ+ people and people with disabilities opportunities that others enjoy in their daily lives. Some studies have even proposed that the traumatic effect of discrimination and rejection on LGBTQ+ people’s mental and physical health can itself be considered a disability.

Disabled LGBTQ+ people who live at the intersection of these two identities can face compounded discrimination and stigmatization, and it is important for those who serve, interact with, and love and care for those individuals to understand this complex dynamic.

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Beyond the headlines: Perceptions of manhood and independence impacted by post violent injury-acquired disability according to a Rutgers Health study

We talk often about gun violence in this country as it pertains to children/school shootings and other mass shootings. But gun violence goes way beyond the headlines. To get a well-rounded view of the reality and impact of gun violence, it's important to take a deeper dive and look at at some additional intersectionalities. There are so many of these various experiences we could explore, but here, we're tapping into the lesser-discussed Black male experience with gun violence and firearm-acquired disability.

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Independence, Inc. receives a one-time grant to enhance independent living and assist with consumer needs

We have received some funding earmarked for enhancing the quality of life and promoting independence for individuals with disabilities living in our communities. The funds will provide resources and training to empower individuals with the tools and knowledge necessary for self-sufficiency and improved living conditions.

To be qualify as a recipient of funds/resources, one must live within our core services area of Douglas, Jefferson and Franklin counties, and have a disability-related need.

Examples may include: stipends for self-direction training; essential durable medical equipment; window AC units, essential supplies to enhance independent living, including cleaning supplies, emergency preparedness kits, personal protective equipment, pest control services, nutritional supplements etc., and housing assistance funds including rental or utility deposits to secure stable living arrangements.

Contact us if you are in need of assistance and feel that you qualify for these resources.

In This Together: Increasing accessible, affordable housing takes teamwork

For years, we have looked out over our back property and brainstormed how to put it to good use. After much needed maintenance and property updates including addressing drainage issues, removing dying/diseased trees and treating and trimming trees along the perimeter, we began considering ways to use the lot ourselves. Ideas included an accessible event space, storage units to rent and building accessible, affordable housing.

Upon reaching conclusions about the feasibility of taking something on ourselves, we floated the idea of selling the property to a person or organization that would use it in line with our mission to advance independence for people with disabilities. And after much planning and consideration, the perfect situation started to form: selling the property to Tenants to Homeowners to create housing that is not only accessible, but affordable.

We won't steal their thunder other than to say, the property is sold and officially under the ownership of Tenants to Homeowners and we look forward to seeing what they do with it!