Imagine watching the person you love slowly fade away, their memories slipping through their fingers like grains of sand.
In Virginia, 164,000 adults are affected by Alzheimer’s disease, almost 11% of all adults over age 65.
For countless spouses, family members and friends of individuals with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia, 24/7 caregiving for a loved one is an everyday reality.
June is Alzheimer’s Awareness month. If you or someone you know has been affected by Alzheimer’s or dementia or is caring for a loved one with this cruel disease, what can you do?
Become part of the “Care Team” supporting the primary caregiver for the person with Alzheimer’s.
JFS Counselor, Chris Nufer, MA, LPC explains,
“Many caregivers struggle with frustration, exhaustion, and emotional distress as their loved ones’ cognitive abilities decline. This stress frequently leads to burnout, forcing families to transition their loved ones into memory care facilities earlier than anticipated.”
Chris Nufer
But, the primary 24/7 caregivers are used to doing all the caregiving and often can’t tell someone what help they need.
One primary caregiver said she hid what was going on from everyone, to protect her husband so that people would still want to visit him or take him out to lunch.
Another primary caregiver said that when her best friend became part of the Care Team and understood all the things that had to be done every day, she was upset.
The friend said, “I saw you every week and you never let on that your life was like this.”
Chris came to JFS 2 years ago to launch the FAMILIES program.
“FAMILIES is a terrific and therapeutic program that helps caregivers reduce the incidences of burnout and gives the ability to provide care to their loved one and keep them from going to a facility too soon.”
Adapted from research at NYU and UVA, the FAMILIES program offers counseling, advocacy, and assistance to family caregivers. Research has shown that participants in the program experience significant reductions in stress and depression, improving their overall well-being and ability to care for their loved ones at home longer.
Through individualized counseling sessions, skill-building workshops, and structured support networks, FAMILIES equips caregivers with the tools they need to manage the challenges of dementia care.
The program consists of seven sessions – two initial individual sessions for the primary caregiver to address his or her specific needs.
Since most caregivers need support from family and friends, four care team sessions are included.
In the Care Team sessions, the Team members come to understand the caregiving tasks, the primary caregiver’s needs, and develop a regular calendar of care with the responsibilities accepted by Care Team members—allowing the primary caregiver some time for themselves.
One primary caregiver in the program said,
“I love the idea of a coordinated care calendar for my husband that I am not responsible to organize all the time.”
In addition, primary caregivers attend a follow-up session and have access to support by telephone on an as-needed basis.
Ultimately, no two Alzheimer’s cases are the same and neither does one day or week predict the next day or week. Through the FAMILIES program, caregivers are offered respite care and learn ways to manage dementia. Counseling in the program gives a pathway to manage the feelings associated with being a caregiver to a loved one with dementia. When people receive support and resources from the Care Team, they are better prepared.
For caregivers, the journey is often isolating and overwhelming. One caregiver who has completed the FAMILIES program said, “I know I am not alone and I can survive and thrive. FAMILIES is a place for me to find encouragement.”
This service is supported by a grant from The JFNA Center on Holocaust Survivor Care and Institute on Aging and Trauma.
