PODCASTS

Tag: #caregivers
Inside Out – Holidays & Dementia – 11/13/24

Inside Out – Holidays & Dementia – 11/13/24

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Holidays and Dementia

Family Life’s “Inside Out” podcast with Martha Manikas-Foster

If someone you love is living with dementia, simplifying how you celebrate the holidays could create a more enjoyable time for everyone. Phil Shippers of the Rochester and Finger Lakes chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association offers practical help in this Inside Out news podcast.

https://www.alz.org/help-support/resources/holidays

One in ten older Americans lives with dementia. Maybe this includes people you love. If so, being flexible and even making a few changes to the way you celebrate the holidays could help everyone feel more comfortable around the table this year.

“We have to realize that due to the changes in the brain, the person is trying to interpret their environment. So, being part of a social event may be upsetting or confusing or stressful,” says Phil Shippers, program director for the Rochester & Finger Lakes Region of the Alzheimer’s Association.

“I think the biggest thing is to be flexible, and perhaps to change our expectations,” he says. “Maybe we try new things. And we want to do this to reduce commotion, to reduce noise and activity, to make the person living with dementia feel more comfortable.”

Even if we’re not organizing the gathering, Shippers says there are practical things we can do to help our loved one living with dementia enjoy the time together. “One of the suggestions that we make is that when people approach the person living with Alzheimer’s or dementia, that they introduce themselves,” he says. “And it doesn’t have to be formal or stuffy. You can just make light of it, saying, ‘Oh, this is your favorite grandson Patrick.’”

We want to preserve each person’s dignity and demonstrate our love. Along the way, Shippers points out, we will make mistakes. “Give yourself some grace as well,” he says. “And just be as positive and really enjoy the moment as much as you can.”

Listen to our Inside Out podcast, where Phil Shippers lists a number of practical ways to make gatherings more comfortable.

For additional help, the Alzheimer’s Association offers support and resources 24/7 through its Help Line at 800-272-3900. You can also contact the Alzheimer’s Association at Alz.org.

That website offers six recommendations for households where the attendees include someone  who is dealing with these types of memory loss and limitations.

 

 

 

#InsideOut

11/13/2024

 

https://familyliferadio.blubrry.net/?s=inside+out
Inside Out – “Elder Isolation” -7/24/24

Inside Out – “Elder Isolation” -7/24/24

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 16:41 — 22.9MB)

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“Elder Isolation”

Family Life’s “Inside Out” News Feature

Nearly a quarter of adults 65 and older are socially isolated. In today’s Inside Out podcast, author and speaker Jen Pollock Michel talks about some of the causes of elder isolation, and encourages Christians to help prevent elderly friends and loved ones from feeling alone.   

Martha talks with Jen Pollock Michel about elder isolation

Nearly a quarter of adults 65 and older are socially isolated, according to the Centers for Disease Control. And social isolation, studies show, increases the risk of hospitalization and a host of serious health conditions, including dementia and depression. “I think there are a lot of reasons why older people get isolated, and one thing I’ve really grown to appreciate is just how devastating it is,” says author and speaker Jen Pollock Michel, whose family moved to live closer to her aging mother.

Michel points to a number of reasons elderly people can grow isolated. Michel’s mother, for instance, became more isolated when her husband’s Parkinson’s Disease made it difficult for the couple to leave their apartment. Others find that the inability to drive isolates them, especially when there’s no accessible public transportation to fill in the gap. People can also withdraw socially when hearing or memory loss make it hard to participate in conversation.

“All of these capacities that enable us to get out of our house, or maybe invite people into our homes–when those diminish, isolation follows” Michel says.

Michel offers encouragement to those who care for and regularly visit the elderly people in their lives.  “It is good work,” she says. “And I think if you know it’s good, you know it’s valuable, and most importantly, you know it’s God-honoring, then that provides the motivation that you need to keep doing it when it’s hard. And you have to lay hold of that.”

 And it can be hard. So Michel suggests that caregivers ask for help. “Getting a network of support, I think, is one thing that I would say, because you can’t do everything all alone,” she says. “I allow myself to just be very human in the task. Depending on God as much as I can. You know, abiding in Christ—the foundation of the Christian life.”

God is the stamina giver and also the model. When we spend time with someone who has been isolated, we are imitating Jesus.  “God clothed Himself with flesh and took up the loving act of presence,” she reminds us. “That’s where we discover God’s heart for us and live out of His love for other people.”

Learn more about Jen Pollock Michel at JenPollockMichel.com.

 

“Inside Out” — and all of Family Life’s podcasts and features are available — to download, share or subscribe. Visit FamilyLife.org/newspodcasts.  You can also hear them during the Family Life Noon Report on the air and streaming online.

 

Living with ALS – We hear from a military veteran – 7/15/24

Living with ALS – We hear from a military veteran – 7/15/24

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Living with ALS – We hear from a military veteran

Tens of thousands of Americans deal with the challenges brought on by ALS — Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis — also known as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease”.

Research shows that people who served in the military are at a higher risk of developing ALS, although it is not yet known what causes this trend.

Elizabeth Fassler is one of those veterans living with ALS. She and her friend Shannon McCarthy discuss the disease, treatments and priorities — and how friends, families and caregivers can be most helpful.

 

Incurable Faith – Joy amid Longsuffering – Andrea Herzer (#2) – 11/16/23

Incurable Faith – Joy amid Longsuffering – Andrea Herzer (#2) – 11/16/23

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 10:52 — 15.0MB)

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Family Life’s “Faith Under Fire“

Andrea Herzer has been journaling about her life with multiple illnesses, debilitating health issues, and a strong inspiring reliance on God. She compiled those writings into a devotional book to encourage others who are looking for that pathway to a life that overflows with the Lord’s sustaining love — no matter what happens with pain, or healing, or suffering, or loss.

Her book’s title recognizes the way that some diagnoses are labeled “incurable”. Yet, she emphasizes that hope and peace can infuse people who face cancer, chronic pain, multiple surgeries, a long convalescence, or any other health issue. Incurable Faith is a partner along that long journey.

This is our second conversation with Herzer. In this interview, she talks about her early days of waiting for healing, as she first sought a return to “normal”. That process of waiting and healing and abiding has now stretched across 20 years. Weaving together her experience and multiple Biblical truths, she offers what she has learned about keeping your spirit at peace. She also encourages caregivers and family members who accompany patients through such processes.

Also: what friends and visitors from church do that is very unhelpful — plus recommendations on ways to be incredibly helpful amid the patience, impatience and loneliness of longsuffering.

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You can also listen to our first conversation with Andrea Herzer, and you’ll find resources she recommends.

 

Resources and background:

 

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