Keeping the "Happy" in Holidays

Ann Napoletan is a founder of UsAgainstAlzheimer's Caregiver Support Group, a member of both our Activists and Clergy Networks, and authors the blog " The Long and Winding Road though Alzheimer's." She also manages the Treasury Department for the nation's largest not-for-profit provider of affordable senior housing and services. Ann also lost her mom to Alzheimer's. Here she offers expert advice on managing what can be such a challenging time of the year. - Trish December is a particularly difficult month. I lost my mom on December 15, 2012 following her long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. The holiday season had

Bipartisan Effort Needed to Slay Alzheimer's

Nobody says it better than Greg. Any Congressperson who doesn't support a huge uptick in research funds for Alzheimer's disease neeeds a heart transplant. Greg's opinion piece was published in The Hill newspaper - Trish

Alzheimer's Stole My Mom's Memories, and Mine Are Next

Daisy Duarte is a patient Advocate for LatinosAgainstAlzheimer's Network. Daisy calls on lawmakers to make Alzheimer's research funding a national priority in this story, which appeared in the Kansas City Star.

In Grace's Honor

This piece originally appeared on Huffington Post. - Trish My mother, Bea Lerner, was a powerhouse. Politics was her passion. Back in 1960, John F. Kennedy credited her with winning New Jersey -- a pivotal state -- for his election. As a result, she earned a spot on Nixon's infamous "Enemies List." She wore this badge proudly. In 1987 my mom was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. I was sure she could beat it. After all, she won every battle she ever fought...but she was no match for Alzheimer's. No one is. In 1992, this valiant lioness of a woman finally disappeared

A Lesson From Those With Physical Disabilities

This post originally appeared on Huffington Post. - Trish Recently, well-known Alzheimer's advocate and 12-year early onset Alzheimer's sufferer, Michael Ellenbogen, shared his frustration about the lack of pace in the fight against Alzheimer's in written testimony to the U.S. Department of Heath and Human Services (HHS). Was a mass shooting similar to Columbine necessary to draw more attention to Alzheimer's? he asked. "I would never do that ... I am trying to get your attention and I am failing and dying at the same time." At this point HHS security deemed Mr. Ellenbogen a threat and banned him from

Reflections on Facilitating Alzheimer's Support Groups

Rev. Dr. Richard Morgan is a founder of the UsAgainstAlzheimer's Clergy Network, the author of the upcoming Leader's Guide for Seasons of Caring: Meditations for Alzheimer's and Dementia Caregivers, and works in pastoral care for those with Alzheimer's and their caregivers. - Trish Our Alzheimer’s Support Group will celebrate its seventh anniversary in December. It is time to stand back and reflect on this much-needed support for caregivers. The group is under the auspices of the Alzheimer’s Association of Pittsburgh. It meets on the third Wednesday of the month from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in the chapel of Redstone Highlands

Why women should worry about Alzheimer’s

By Jill Lesser and Trish Vradenburg Jill Lesser is president of WomenAgainstAlzheimer’s, a network of USAgainstAlzheimer’s. - Trish (CNN) – The plight of Alzheimer’s patients and the challenges for those who care for them are garnering more attention thanks to movies like “ Still Alice” and the steady disclosure of well-known sufferers, like musician Glenn Campbell, model and entrepreneur B. Smith, and Governor Jeb Bush’s mother-in-law. They are all courageous in talking about the disease that robs people of mind and dignity. But one aspect of this debilitating disease is only just beginning to register: Alzheimer’s disproportionately affects women. Early

The United States and China - Sharing Research and Care Approaches for Those with Alzheimer's and Dementia

Mara Botonis is the author of our upcoming Clinical Trials Diary blog series. - Trish At the end of a long tree-lined cobblestone road past a fruit and vegetable stand, and next to the remnants of a near century old abode, in the hallways of a hospital built in the 1950's, Dr. Zhang Shouzi rounds on his dementia patients in a 60-bed dementia care wing at Beijing Geriatric Hospital (BGH). The BGH is located northwest of the Summer Palace in the Haidian District of Beijing and is the only hospital in a city with an estimated 21-22 million people that

I Still Remember Love

This post originally appeared on The Huffington Post. - Trish 1987 My mother had once again refused to see a doctor. This from a woman who, until now, had been a hypochondriac. All I wanted, I told her was, "A simple evaluation." "Evaluate yourself," she snapped, her determined chin jutting out. "Mom, I'm not the one who thinks strange men are in the house." "Just because you don't see them, doesn't mean they're not here. Move in, you'll see them. Guaranteed." "Mom, you forget to take your medicine." "Get me an alarm clock, I'll remember." "I did that. You still

Probing The Realities of Big Data In Alzheimer's

This blog post was originally published by the Huffington Post. - Trish Still Alice, the film with Academy-award winning actress Julianne Moore, powerfully depicts a woman's steep descent into Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and demonstrates why people overwhelmingly cite Alzheimer's as the disease they most fear. There is currently no effective treatment for AD. For individuals, an Alzheimer's diagnosis is the beginning of a dark, inevitable journey to a place where our connection to ourselves and the world slowly fades away. For governments, the spiraling global growth of the disease -- with nearly 150 million victims projected for 2050 -- threatens