Caregiver Storyteller - About Alzheimer's and Dementia Caregiving

Max Stappler met and married his wife, Vivian, in Israel in 1968. After more than 30 years of marriage, it was a friend who first noticed that Vivian’s behavior had changed. As Vivian began displaying some classic symptoms of Alzheimer’s, Max’s role as primary caregiver grew into a full-time job. One day, Vivian got lost in New York. It was then that Max decided to leave New York to care for Vivian in the safer locations of Florida and Colorado.

Occasionally, Caregiver/Storyteller interviews dementia care professionals. In this interview, we hear from Dr. Lisa Mosconi about the role nutrition plays in brain health. The science becomes personal as Dr. Mosconi shares the story of how her grandmother developed Alzheimer’s and the challenge that her mother faced as primary caregiver.

Dr. Mosconi holds a PhD degree in Neuroscience & Nuclear Medicine, and is a certified Integrative Nutritionist and holistic healthcare practitioner. She is well known for her research on the early detection of Alzheimer’s disease in at-risk individuals using brain imaging techniques such as positron emission tomography (PET) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). She is passionately interested in how risk of memory loss and Alzheimer’s disease can be mitigated, if not prevented through the combination of appropriate medical care and lifestyle modifications involving diet, nutrition, physical and intellectual fitness.

Ann Wyatt has been a long-term care professional since the 1970s. In 2011, she was tasked with finding a way to help nursing care facilities develop programs that better meet the needs of residents with dementia. When she visited the Beatitudes program in Arizona, she found the answer. In this episode, Ann shares what happens when an organization re-organizes itself from top to bottom to make comfort the priority in long-term dementia care.

Rob Zukowski's mother, Elena, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and developed dementia as a result. Rob serves as the primary, long-distance caregiver for his mother - he lives in Manhattan and travels to upstate New York to visit her every weekend. With some family support and a dedication to his mother, Rob is able to perform his duties as caregiver - though the physical and emotional toll that family caregiving takes can be heard in his words and his voice.

Ellen Lebowitz first became a caregiver when her father was dying of congestive heart failure. While caregiving was emotionally difficult, Ellen’s burden was lightened by a hospice staff who kept her informed of her father’s status every step of the way. When Ellen’s mother, Ruth, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease, she again became a caregiver – but this time she was caregiving for someone with a disease that felt unpredictable and disorienting. Despite it all, Ellen learned to let go of conflict from the past and offer her mother unconditional love.