Elder Care Cafe

Welcome back!With the recent announcement that David Suchet is revising the role of Hercule Poirot for four episodes to air on ITV, Agatha Christie fans are rejoicing world-wide. Suchet began his portrayal of the eclectic detective over 21 years ago with great success. Although others such as Peter Ustinov have occasionally played Poirot, most fans remember [...]

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According to a recent Swedish study, many older adults are not meeting their nutritional needs. Nearly 15 percent of adults between 75 and 80 years are at risk for malnutrition based on such factors as their diet, weight, and physical and mental well being. Women were at greater risk than men at 19 percent (women) [...]

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Recently, I had the very pleasurable experience of enjoying a DVD filmed and edited by Bill Manning and produced by Natural Arts Media. Waterfalls is the title, and as the subtitle notes, the DVD does “Bring a New Level of Relaxation to Your Day….”

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Every year since, probably, before I was born, my family has made the annual cemetery visit to the grave sites of loved ones the week before Memorial Day. An annual ritual that at one time included at least six cemeteries in one day. The day also consisted of a caravan of cars, pickups, and vans, [...]

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As I have mentioned before, AARP.org is one of my favorite websites because they provide much needed support for caregivers. Over the years, the site has gathered an enormous amount of quality information conveniently available whenever caregivers may have the need to find pertinent information.

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Tired? Fatigued? Exhausted? Have you ever felt you were too tired to go on, but you knew if you didn’t take care of your loved one, who else would? Fatigue is the bane of many a caregivers existence. That is especially true when their loved one requires more care than the caregiver has the energy [...]

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Most caregivers have some time during the day when they can step away from their duties for a period of time. If the end is near, or your loved one is seriously ill, you may need to stay by their bedside for longer periods of time, but you still need to take some time for respite. [...]

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Noveline DeVault was a Southern pentecostal preacher in her mid-fifties when she and her husband adopted four-year-old Carol. When her adoptive mother was eighty-nine years old, author and adopted daughter Carol O’Dell, brought Noveline into Carol’s home. Her mother was suffering from Parkinson’s and heart disease, and could no longer live on her own.

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Caregivers – have you ever had the feeling you walked into a room, and everyone else left? Sometimes caregiving is like that. Caring for a loved one is at times rewarding and fulfilling, but quite often caregivers can feel they’ve been abandoned on the doorstep of life.

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  Mom grew up in the eastern side of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, between St. Ignace and Sault Saint Marie. There are many lighthouses throughout the Great Lakes region. She loved taking their pictures, and entered those she could, climbing to the top to enjoy the panoramic view. One year shortly before she retired, Mom, [...]

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