Tag: alzheimer’s

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Why senior citizens must keep mentally active

Writing, trading on shares online…there is nothing that a senior citizen cannot learn to keep alert and in prime wellness.
by Nagesh Kini

The rapidly changing dynamics of the population profile have resulted in an increasing addition of elders, those in the 60+ age bracket.

This has brought about the urgent need to seek the active participation of these presently mentally and physically stable senior men and women into the main stream of the society. Not doing this can make them prey to debilitating ailments like Alzheimer’s, dementia, Parkinson’s, vertigo, spondylitis, diabetes, cardiac conditions, strokes, hypertension, and vision and hearing losses, among many others. Their consequences can be minimised by preventing the feelings of isolation and marginalisation by making them independent and fruitful members of society, by changing social attitudes to keep themselves mentally alert to keep potential serious neurological disorders at bay.

It is essential for those after 60 to keep both mentally and physically agile rather than succumb to lifestyle diseases. According to a recent study published by the reputed British Medical Journal, The Lancet, physical inactivity or peoples’ failure to spend at least 150 minutes a week doing moderate exercise such as brisk walking for 30 minutes five days a week is responsible for 5.3m of the 57m deaths globally. This causes about 6 to 10% of major non-communicable diseases including coronary heart diseases and type 2 Diabetes.

Another team from Brigham & Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School estimated the global impact of physical inactivity by calculating population attributable factors – or how much of the diseases could theoretically be prevented if people were sufficiently active both mentally and physically if inactivity decreased by 10-25% translates to 533,000 and 1.3m deaths potentially averted worldwide. Life expectancy could rise by 0.68 years if physically eliminated.

Post-retirement activities – both mental and physical – can go a long way in retirees maintaining their own mental equilibrium by contributing to wellbeing of the society at large. They can contribute their valuable hands-on experiences in profession and industry and provide vital intellectual inputs.

These days one of the most intellectually stimulating mental activities is writing by contributing to columns in publications of repute. This requires the writer to undertake deep study of the subject both on and off-line and keeps the brain busy by keeping constantly updated on the subject before putting the matter in print.

Writing is an extremely low cost, challenging and stimulating exercise. It can take place in the confines of one’s home. It just involves accessing facts and figures on-line and putting flesh on to the skeleton to bring out a well authored output that can initiate mind-boggling debates from readers far and wide. Writing can be financially rewarding, too – publications these days do remunerate columnists handsomely.

Writing need not necessarily be on professional issues; one can even write, among others on matters of common interests like hobbies, spirituality, food, nature and health, like benefits of walking!

Being basic computer literate can go a long way for the elders in helping their writing forays. It no longer requires putting down the matter in long hand and then having to transcribe it on a typewriter to manually post the hardcopy. All that one does is to punch a few keys to put it down in the Word format – edit, add, delete and amend the matter at will and mail it across. And hey presto you’ve conveyed your thoughts miles across! More and more senior citizens have become computer savy and learnt to keep in touch on Skype not only with their offspring, grandchildren and siblings, friends and even distant relations staying in the other end of the world at any hour of the day. I have a 75-year-old aunt at Bengaluru who picked up computer skills from her granddaughter and now merrily trades online – making a lot of money in the bargain!  This helps get her over loneliness by keeping in touch just punching the keys sitting at home all the time!

A happy retirement with activities like writing can make for a lot of difference to prevent isolation and loneliness!

Nagesh Kini is a Mumbai based chartered accountant-turned-activist. ‘Grey Space’ is a weekly column on senior citizen issues. If you have an anecdote or legal information, or anything you feel is useful to senior citizens, caregives and the society at large, feel free to get it published in this space. Write to editor@themetrognome.in or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Themetrognome.in and we will publish your account.

(Picture courtesy www.samopportunities.in. Image is used for representational purpose only)

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A letter to a mother who doesn’t remember

Author and blogger Lisa Hirsch writes with love and gratitude to a mother who changed her world after developing Alzheimer’s disease.
Lisa Hirsch with her mother
Lisa Hirsch with her mother

Mom, as I sit down to write my letter I wonder how I can possibly start to share all my feelings with you. So much has changed since you developed Alzheimer’s 10 years ago. As I gather my thoughts I realise that you will not be able to comprehend most of what I say.

As a teenager I loved you, yet somehow I wanted one of my friend’s mothers to be my mother. Then, after you became ill I fell so deeply in love with you. An unconditional love was born and since then you have inspired me each and every day.

I’m not really sure why my sentiments changed so drastically, I just know that I was given a second chance to feel a deep love and appreciation for you. As I reflect back through these years you have inspired me and have become my hero.

Your humor, your smiles, your sweetness have melted my heart.  In several months you will be turning 90 years “young”. You can still be feisty and, as you run around in your Merry Walker, I wonder what you could possibly be thinking.  Of course I could ask you, yet as silly as that might seem you would not be able to remember anything.

Before entering the nursing home this past August I spoke to you every single day. We ended each call throwing each other our kisses. I have continued to phone the nursing home every day only wanting to hear how you are doing. On occasion I get lucky and am able to hear your sweet voice.

Most of the time you say ‘hello’, and after a minute you just drop the phone. You do not even realize that I called or recognize the sound of my voice. Recently I was able to catch you when you were having a minute of clarity. You sounded free of Alzheimer’s as you shared that you missed me. These words immediately melted my heart. After hanging up the phone I knew that this was a magical moment, an occasion for me to treasure.

Mom, I am also a mother. My son, your only grandchild, is 26 years old. You adored him and yet today you no longer remember who he is. There have been times that you think you have seven children and days when you think you have none. As a mother I cannot envision that one day I might also not know that I have a child.

I find it hard to believe that a disease like this can wipe away your whole world as if it never existed, leaving your mind a blank canvas. Daddy passed away almost twenty years ago and I do not believe that you have much recollection of him. I’m actually happy that he is no longer alive. I cannot imagine the pain he would have endured watching you fade away.

Today, in your world, I would have to help you brush your teeth, comb your hair, eat your food and get dressed. As a child you once did all of this for me, as well as comforting me when I was sick, or perhaps feeling a little blue. Yet with everything that has changed, at least I know that we still have each other to share our love.

What has changed is that our roles have reversed. Now it is my turn to care for you as you once cared for me. The truth is, mom, that no matter whatever you can or cannot do, I am still your daughter and you will always be my mother.

Life is strange; for out of you becoming ill I have discovered a whole new world. I was given a second chance to love you unconditionally. You have opened my heart to such a deep compassionate love. Mom as I end my letter, I just want to share with you, how very much I adore you. I feel honored and I am so proud that you are my mother.

Your one and only daughter,

Lisa

Lisa Hirsch is a popular blogger and the author of My Mom My Hero. You can find more of her writings at http://mommyhero.blogspot.com. 

‘Grey Space’ is a weekly column on senior citizen issues. If you have an anecdote or leagl information, or anything you feel is useful to senior citizens, caregives and the society at large, feel free to get it published in this space. Write to editor@themetrognome.in or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Themetrognome.in and we will publish your account.

(Pictures courtesy www.pinterest.com, positivemed.com)

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Campaign

Go back to your roots

We discourage the use of our mother tongue. But using your native language has health benefits, especially for Alzheimer’s patients.
by Ritika Bhandari Parekh

It feels that the Hindi proverb, ‘ghar ki murgi, daal barabar’ fits perfectly when someone attempts to use their local dialect.

Have you ever tried speaking in your mother tongue in public? Do you cringe when a fellow traveller speaks in theirghar ki bhasha? Why do parents ask their kids to speak in Hindi or English when they are dining outside?

The warmth brought in by speaking in the mother tongue is suddenly lost in the bevy of so-called manners. On a recent episode of the Minute To Win It game, a contestant said it was weird hearing her mother talk to the host in English because the family always used their native language, French, for daily conversations. It made me think of talking to my mother in Marwari and how when she uses Hindi, I immediately feel that something does not sound right.

HindiMother tongue or native language stands for the first language learnt at home in childhood. It lends a cultural identity to an individual and shapes his accent and approach to varied thoughts. In a world as diverse as ours, the native language binds communities in harmony. Living in a cosmopolitan city like Mumbai has its perks – you are aware of Gujarati, Bengali, Marathi and many other languages. But it is depressing to see that most parents today prefer speaking English even at home.

While taking classes in languages like French, Spanish and German is a delight, speaking with your toddler in anything but English is frowned upon. Bilingualism or speaking two languages fluently nowhere includes the learning of Indian languages. While one may proudly flaunt the French merci, getting a shukriya in Hindi is difficult.

Research shows that bilingual children have a better ability to focus on a task while tuning out distractions. Also, bilingualism may delay the onset of age-related dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease in adults. So increase your brain power and become more perceptive by talking with your loved ones in your native language. Forget the ‘p’ language and speak in Sindhi, Urdu, Telugu, Kannada with your child. The grasping power of a child is higher and hence, learning native words will be a cake walk once you start speaking.  In a small way, do your bit to keep the language alive or like the dodo, this too shall be extinct.

German author Elias Canetti, who won the 1981 Nobel Prize in Literature said, “There is no such thing as an ugly language. Today I hear every language as if it were the only one, and when I hear of one that is dying, it overwhelms me as though it were the death of the Earth.”

The quote reminds me of the Busuu language from Cameroon. As of 2005, only three speakers of the language were alive. A website called ‘Save Busuu’ was started in a bid to take its heritage forward. It is time that we take pride in our local language and use it as often as possible. When PM Narendra Modi says ‘Look East!’ then let us emulate them too. Countries like China and Japan have built their economies by preserving their language and maintaining its importance.

Back home, the Kerala government has started the Malayalam Mission in the city, wherein they teach the Malayali language for free to non-resident Malayalis. The natives are not only happy but are making the most of this opportunity as it will help them get past bus signboards in Kerala.

As Indians, we need to conserve our beautiful languages and their literature. If each of us takes pride in our mother tongue, then not only does the language survive, but also our brain benefits. Every Mumbaikar will agree that Government offices work smoothly for the person who knows his Marathi. Papers get processed at a faster speed, all because you are one of them i.e. the local. Sure, that’s biased, but it shows how language can open doors.

As British writer and critic Giles Lytton Strachey said, “Perhaps of all the creations of man, language is the most astonishing.” What, then, stops us from amusing ourselves and immersing in the etymology of cohesiveness, bonding and intimacy via our native language?

(Pictures courtesy www.sevamandir.org, www.indoamerican-news.com. Images are used for representational purpose only)

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Wellness

City gets its first private geriatric clinic

PD Hinduja Hospital opens multi-disciplinary geriatric clinic from today; wants to create awareness of gerontology and devise specific treatment plans.
by the Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Considering the high numbers of senior citizens in the country and the fact that by 2050, India will have the second highest numbers of elderly in the world (after China), it is a bit strange that there are not too many hospitals looking into specialised elderly care. Alarmingly, at least a third of this huge population will live alone and require care.

Dr._Preeti_Chhabria_Hearteningly, one of the city’s premier private hospitals, PD Hinduja Hospital, is opening the city’s first geriatric clinic today, on an OPD (Out Patient Department) basis. Says Dr Preeti Chhabria (in pic on left), consultant in internal medicine and who was instrumental in setting up the clinic, “As people age, there are several changes taking place in their bodies, which are accepted as ‘normal’ by virtue of ageing. We want to bring about the awareness of gerontology, and the idea that it is not necessary to accept these signs of ageing as normal.”

She says that these psychological and physical changes cause a sense of ‘burden’ in the elderly. “Their bodies change and their mobility is affected. Add to that the sense of being dependent, both financially and emotionally, on their children, plus the grief of losing children or the spouse, and the person undergoes a lot of pressure in his daily life,” Dr Chhabria explains. “The elderly suffer in silence because people around them may not be aware of or sensitive to the pressure that they are under.”

What to expect at the clinic

Dr Chhabria has worked in the field of elder care in the US for 15 years, and will use her experience in the multi-disciplinary clinic. There will be three doctors in attendance at the clinic – a consultant for internal medicine, a psychologist and a physiotherapist, all working in tandem to devise the best treatment plan for each patient. “We would evaluate their physical and mental status, and we would follow a ‘grading system’ for each patient. We have clinical scales for grading, to include the parameters Normal, Grey and Mild/Moderate Dementia. Anybody qualifying for the last scale is immediately brought to the attention of their families.

“The testing procedures we follow are fairly accurate, to the extent that we can determine if a person is suffering from ageing-related factors or if his or her condition is the product of other factors like illness or stress,” Dr Chhabria explains. The testing also involves evaluating a person’s mood, checking cognitive function and testing memory.

DSC_0033Back to the future

Dr Chhabria says that such a clinic is necessary in an environment that is extremely “tunnel visioned” towards providing only for the youth. “Geriatrics is the other end of the spectrum from paediatrics. In our daily lives, the young have to be aware of the fact that they are going to be caregivers for the elderly, and that they have to ensure that their old age is safe and peaceful. The elderly should not be marginalised, but taken care of with love and empathy.” In the future, Dr Chhabria says there are plans to offer counselling to caregivers of the elderly.

The clinic will remain open on Thursdays between 9.30 am to 5.30 pm. Please call the clinic on 022 39818181/67668181 for appointments and more details.

(Pictures courtesy PD Hinduja Hospital)

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Campaign

10 warning signs for Alzheimer’s

How do you know if your loved one is suffering from dementia or Alzheimer’s? Use this checklist to know more.
by Sailesh Mishra, Silver Innings Foundation and Alzheimer’s Association National Office, Chicago

Dementia is a general term to denote a progressive degenerative disease of the brain resulting in loss of memory, intellectual decline, behavioural and personality changes. Mostly older people above 60 years of age are affected by this condition. In Latin, ‘dementia’ means irrationality, and this disorder results in a restriction of daily activities, and in most cases, leads in the long term to the need for care. There are many forms of dementia, the most common one being Alzheimer’s disease.

alzhiemersAlzheimer’s knows no social, economic, ethnic or geographical boundaries and affects people throughout the world. It is estimated that every seventh person in world will suffer from some form of dementia.

There is no cure for the disease, but some treatment and therapy is available to stabilise and arrest the progress of the disease. Here’s what you should watch out for if you think a loved one may be suffering from dementia or Alzheimer’s, and what is normal behaviour:

#1) Memory loss that disrupts daily life

One of the most common signs of Alzheimer’s is memory loss, especially forgetting recently learned information. Others include forgetting important dates or events; asking for the same information over and over; relying on memory aides (such as reminder notes or electronic devices) or family members for things they used to handle on their own.

What’s typical? Sometimes forgetting names or appointments, but remembering them later.

#2) Challenges in planning or solving problems

Some people may experience changes in their ability to develop and follow a plan or work with numbers. They may have trouble following a familiar recipe or keeping track of monthly bills. They may have difficulty concentrating and take much longer to do things than they did before.

What’s typical? Making occasional errors when balancing a checkbook.

#3) Difficulty completing familiar tasks at home, at work or at leisure

People with Alzheimer’s often find it hard to complete daily tasks. Sometimes, people may have trouble driving to a familiar location, managing a budget at work or remembering the alzheimer'srules of a favourite game.

What’s typical? Occasionally needing help to use the settings on a microwave or to record a television show.

#4) Confusion/disorientation with time or place

People with Alzheimer’s can lose track of dates, seasons and the passage of time. They may have trouble understanding something if it is not happening immediately. Sometimes they may forget where they are or how they got there.

What’s typical? Getting confused about the day of the week but figuring it out later.

#5) Trouble understanding visual images and spatial relationships

For some people, having vision problems is a sign of Alzheimer’s. They may have difficulty reading, judging distance and determining colour or contrast. In terms of perception, they may pass a mirror and think someone else is in the room. They may not realise they are the person in the mirror.

What’s typical? Vision changes related to cataracts.

#6) New problems with words in speaking or writing or problems with language

People with Alzheimer’s may have trouble following or joining a conversation. They may stop in the middle of a conversation and have no idea how to continue or they may repeat themselves. They may struggle with vocabulary, have problems finding the right word or call things by the wrong name (e.g., calling a “watch” a “hand-clock”).

What’s typical? Sometimes having trouble finding the right word.

#7) Misplacing things and losing the ability to retrace steps

A person with Alzheimer’s disease may put things in unusual places. They may lose things and be unable to go back over their steps to find them again. Sometimes, they may accuse others of stealing. This may occur more frequently over time.

What’s typical? Misplacing things from time to time, such as a pair of glasses or the remote control.

alzheimer's #8) Decreased or poor judgment

People with Alzheimer’s may experience changes in judgment or decision-making. For example, they may use poor judgment when dealing with money, giving large amounts to telemarketers. They may pay less attention to grooming or keeping themselves clean.

What’s typical? Making a bad decision once in a while.

#9) Withdrawal from work or social activities/loss of initiative

A person with Alzheimer’s may start to remove themselves from hobbies, social activities, work projects or sports. They may have trouble keeping up with a favourite sports team or remembering how to complete a favourite hobby. They may also avoid being social because of the changes they have experienced.

What’s typical? Sometimes feeling weary of work, family and social obligations.

#10) Changes in mood and personality

The mood and personalities of people with Alzheimer’s can change. They can become confused, suspicious, depressed, fearful or anxious. They may be easily upset at home, at work, with friends or in places where they are out of their comfort zone.

What’s typical? Developing very specific ways of doing things and becoming irritable when a routine is disrupted.

The Metrognome is committed to the cause of Alzheimer’s and dementia awareness through all of September 2013. If you want to share information or anecdotes related to Alzheimer’s or dementia, write to editor@themetrognome.in and we will feature it.

(Pictures courtesy www.webicina.com, www.firstpost.com, www.thehindu.com, www.indianexpress.com)

Categories
Campaign

Fun and learning with senior citizens

The city-based NGO Silver Innings Foundation organised events for senior citizens at the YWCA yesterday. Here are some event snapshots.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

The Silver Innings Foundation, which works in the field of elder care, counselling and assisted living for senior citizens, among other things, yesterday organised a series of activities for elders at the YWCA, Andheri. A few students from Nirmala Niketan College of Social Work  also participated in the events.

The Foundation’s events were a good success, with about 50 elders participating. Says Sailesh Mishra, Founder President, Silver Innings, “We did a street play, then an interactive PPT talk. We also conducted a memory checkup and held memory games and exercise for the elders. There was also a sharing session by family care givers, and the best part was the dance in which everybody took part!”

See pics of the events below:

The Metrognome is committed to the cause of Alzheimer’s and dementia awareness in India. If you have an experience or information to share on Alzheimer’s or dementia, do write to us at editor@themetrognome.in and we will feature your story.

 (Pictures courtesy Silver Innings Foundation)

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