CAROL BRADLEY BURSACK

Minding Our Elders: What is assisted living?

Mom really should have help bathing and someone should monitor her medications. Even dressing is getting to be a chore because of severe arthritis. The problem is that the facility wants to charge more to provide these services. I thought this kind of care is what assisted living is about. – Greg

By Carol Bradley Bursack , February 02, 2013

Minding Our Elders: Daughter overwhelmed with parents’ sudden care needs

A year ago, my mother had a heart attack. She came out of it fairly well, but still can’t do much around the house. Then, last month my dad had a stroke. I’m an only child and feel overwhelmed with all of this.

By Carol Bradley Bursack , January 26, 2013

Minding Our Elders: Help elders endure isolation due to flu outbreak

With the flu outbreak, the nursing home where my mother lives has isolated residents and is not allowing visitors. Marie says Mom is very upset. Mom understands when Marie tells her on the phone why she can’t visit, but then Mom quickly forgets and calls wondering why my Marie’s not there. What can we do to make Mom feel better?

By Carol Bradley Bursack , January 19, 2013

Minding Our Elders: Hearing loss adds to problems of dementia

DEAR CAROL: My mom is 89-years-old, lives in assisted living and has dementia. She also has substantial hearing loss which isn’t helped very much by her hearing aids. Her dementia prevents her from understanding closed caption TV, so that spoils TV as entertainment for her. Basically, she’s bored and miserable.

By Carol Bradley Bursack , January 12, 2013

Minding our Elders: Mom mixes up medications

DEAR CAROL: My mom lives alone and seems to be suffering some form of dementia, though her doctor hasn’t pinned it down to one kind. Right now, the problem is how to manage her medications and vitamins. She’s supposed to be taking three medications daily, plus a vitamin.

By Carol Bradley Bursack , January 06, 2013

Minding our Elders: An elder’s fall can cause lasting trauma

DEAR CAROL: Reading your column has helped me care for my 83-year-old mom who has Alzheimer’s disease. Now, I’m writing with my own question. Mom fell while in the memory unit of a very good assisted living center.

By Carol Bradley Bursack , December 29, 2012

Minding Our Elders: Ask staff for advice when visiting elders in nursing homes

DEAR CAROL: My husband and I are traveling this Christmas and want to take a side trip to visit my aging aunt who is in a nursing home.

By Carol Bradley Bursack , December 23, 2012

Minding Our Elders: Ask staff for advice when visiting elders in nursing homes

DEAR CAROL: My husband and I are traveling this Christmas and want to take a side trip to visit my aging aunt who is in a nursing home. My aunt has Alzheimer’s disease, which we don’t have experience with. Besides that, we are both uncomfortable in a hospital setting and haven’t had experience with nursing homes. What should we consider? – Jen

By Carol Bradley Bursack , December 22, 2012

Minding Our Elders: Mapping out dad’s future care

Dear Carol: My dad has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. He’s considered Stage 2, according to the doctor, which is apparently quite early. Yet, I see many challenges now and of course many more in the future. How do we approach this?

By Carol Bradley Bursack , December 15, 2012

Minding our Elders: Counter speech loss with extra time and caring

DEAR CAROL: My dad had a severe stroke last month. He’s home now and in a wheelchair. What I find the most difficult to deal with is his speech.

By Carol Bradley Bursack , December 08, 2012

Minding Our Elders: Grieving is unique to individuals

DEAR CAROL: My mom died six months ago and I’m still having a hard time accepting her death. I keep thinking about what I could or should have done better when she was still with me. I don’t communicate my grief to my family members because they think I should be over it by now. They seem to be getting on with their lives just fine, but I’m not.

By Carol Bradley Bursack , November 30, 2012

Minding Our Elders: Kids urge father to hire help in caring for mom

DEAR CAROL: My mother is in the middle stage of Alzheimer’s. Dad is her primary caregiver, and it’s wearing him out. He can’t sleep because she doesn’t sleep. He’s worried about her wandering even though the house is secure. My siblings and I try to help, but we are all out of town and have jobs and families. Dad refuses to consider putting Mom in assisted living, yet he can’t continue life as he’s living it, either. We’re all worried sick that he’ll have a stroke or something while he’s trying to provide all of Mom’s care. How do we convince him to do things differently?

By Carol Bradley Bursack , November 26, 2012

Minding Our Elders: Humor essential therapy even with Alzheimer’s

DEAR CAROL: My grandfather has Alzheimer’s disease, so my mom shows me your column a lot. I love Gramps and would never want to hurt him, but sometimes he says and does things that are funny, even though he can’t help it.

By Carol Bradley Bursack , November 17, 2012

Minding Our Elders: Recently widowed mother shows signs of dementia

How do you gently begin to supervise a parent’s health? Our mother is widowed now and 74 years old. She took care of our dad who had dementia and she seemed to do okay for awhile after he died. But now she frequently forgets her medications doubles them up, which she has admitted, and she frequently mixes up names and places.

By Carol Bradley Bursack , November 10, 2012

Minding Our Elders: How do we tell mom we’re selling her home?

Mom’s adjusting well to her new environment, but she still wants to go home periodically. We are having a problem deciding on how to tell her that it’s time to sell her home of over 50 years. We’ve always been upfront and honest with Mom, so we feel we must tell her the truth. Eventually, she’ll need the money from the home sale to pay for her care. Any advice on how to address this would be appreciated. – Sandy

By Carol Bradley Bursack , November 03, 2012