Written by former psychologist Richard Taylor, Alzheimer’s From the Inside Out is a collection of 80 essays documenting life with Alzheimer’s disease.
I haven’t had the opportunity to read this book yet, but according to reviews, it’s a book that anyone dealing with Alzheimer’s – either professionally or personally – should read.
Reviews:
Richard Taylor’s First-Hand Account of What It’s Like To Have Alzheimer’s
The Reluctant Expert
Some Thoughts From A Person With Dementia

How do you keep track of what you need to do each day, week, and month when caring for your family member with Alzheimer’s?  You have their needs and affairs to think about as well as your own.  You may be running two households…theirs and yours.  They may be living with you.  Or they may be in a nursing home, yet still need you to oversee their care.
How do you keep from feeling frazzled and torn in many directions with their care, your affairs, and a family that might include children? 
There’s no one answer that meets everyone’s needs.  However, I …read more

During a cleaning spree recently, I came across some notes, copies of newsletters to family, and journal entries written during those days of caring for Mother throughout her Alzheimer’s journey.  Reading these brought back some of those challenges and joys of that time.
From one of my newsletters to family after she came to live with Jim and me – “Mother does get up more and more throughout the night and wanders around the house or gets confused about where the bathroom is, where her bed is, etc.  So I never get a full night’s sleep.  Sometimes I’m up with her as …read more

“You need to keep a journal of your experiences with Mother,” my husband said.
Why would I want to keep a journal of this time in Mother’s and my life, I wondered.  At that time, shortly after my father’s death when Jim and I became Mother’s main caregivers, I wasn’t sure I wanted to remember these frustrating days.
However, being a writer and off-and-on journal writer, I did jot down some of our experiences.  These became helpful when I had to talk with doctors, explain situations to my siblings, arrange for day care, and eventually fill out forms for nursing home admission.
Then …read more