Workshop Helps Families Understand Dementia

The Alzheimer's Association will present the last talk in its three-part educational workshop series offering practical answers to the questions that arise in the early stage of Alzheimer's disease.

Living with Alzheimer's ? Part 3, Care Planning, Financial and Legal Matters, Safety Issues and Driving will be offered 9-11 a.m. Tuesday, April 17, at Family Service Agency, 101 South B St, Lompoc.

To register in advance, call 800-272-3900. Seating is limited.

In the early stage, families face new questions as they adjust. What does the diagnosis mean? What kinds of plans need to be made? What resources are available to help?

Workshop participants will hear from those directly affected by Alzheimer's and learn about ways to to cope with the changes that come with an early-stage diagnosis.

More than 15 million Americans provide unpaid care for people with Alzheimer's or other dementias.

In 2016, caregivers of people with Alzheimer's or other dementias provided an estimated 18.2 billion hours of unpaid assistance, a contribution to the nation valued at $230.1 billion.

The care provided to people with Alzheimer's and other dementias is wide-ranging and, in some instances, all-encompassing.

Caregivers for people with dementia tend to provide more extensive assistance and experience more difficulty than caregivers of individuals without dementia.

About 25 percent of dementia caregivers are sandwich-generation caregivers, meaning they care not only for an aging parent, but also for children under age 18.

Moreover, new data shows caregivers for Alzheimer's and dementia patients may experience increased difficulties and detriments to their own health than caregivers for individuals with certain other conditions.

For more, call the Alzheimer's Association, 636-6432.

- Donna Beal for Alzheimer's Association.