Alzheimer's early stages : first steps for family, friends and caregivers
(Book - Regular Print)

Includes bibliographical references (pages 264-284) and index.

This third edition of Alzheimer's Early Stages offers the 5 million individuals diagnosed with the disease and their loved ones and caretakers new research findings, new approaches to treatment, and new information on the three key areas of Alzheimer's disease: medical aspects, day-to-day care, and care for the caretaker. Author Daniel Kuhn has been a social worker and educator focused on enhancing the well-being of people with Alzheimer's disease and other dementias, as well as that of their families, since 1987. Alzheimer's disease has a beginning, not just an end; and as with all beginnings, one must take the first steps before one takes the last. The problems encountered early in the disease and the advice required then are very different from what is needed later in the disease. This book enlightens us about these early stages. Daniel Kuhn seeks to replace fear with knowledge, in the hope that knowledge will lead to empowerment. What does the disease look like and feel like when it first occurs? What types of problems are encountered first by the person with the disease, and by their family and friends? How can these problems be dealt with most effectively? This book is also about reversing the dehumanization that unfortunately is now associated with Alzheimer's disease. Although the disease should be feared and respected, it is not a cause for embarrassment or shame.... This book will serve as a discussion tool to encourage open and frank discussions about mild Alzheimer's disease among patients and family members. In Part One, readers learn about the medical aspects of Alzheimer's through descriptions of diagnosis and the progression of the disease from its earliest origins, and explanations of the current and proposed medical treatments. This section also describes potential non-drug means of treating the disease, such as physical exercise, and speculative treatments, such as coconut oil, that are gaining popularity yet are not.