Yesterday, one of our staff members attended the Northern Virginia Dementia Care Consortium in Alexandria, VA. At the conference, leading experts on Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias offered insights and shared best practices for caregivers and senior-serving professionals. The following is a compilation of some helpful information that our staff member gleaned from the presentations: […]
Caregiving in Other Countries- What We Can Learn
Each November, National Family Caregivers Month focuses on the challenges facing family caregivers. Sponsored each year by the National Family Caregivers Association (NFCA), this commemorative month recognizes more than 50 million family caregivers who spend an estimated 30 billion hours every year providing emotional, financial, nursing, social, homemaking, and other services to friends and loved ones. The estimated value of these caregiving services, if paid, would […]
Halloween Can Be Scary for those with Dementia
Q. My mother-in-law has dementia and lives at home with a caregiver to assist her with activities of daily living. Before she was diagnosed, she loved Halloween, especially all the decorations, seeing the grandchildren dressed up in costumes, and the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. The children also loved trick-or-treating at her home, because she would go all […]
Caution: Our Top 10 SCARIEST Articles
With Halloween upon us, it is time to present you, our dear readers, with this year’s scariest & creepiest stories. From the nightmare of probate to court cases involving filial responsibility, we uncovered some scary ground. To celebrate Halloween, we’ve ranked our scariest articles for you to revisit (if you dare). As always, thank you […]
Caregiving Across the Miles
Q. I live in Northern Virginia, 700 miles away from my parents, who are in Florida. My father has Parkinson’s and insists on staying in our family home. His mobility has diminished, and I worry about him falling nearly every day. I cannot move closer because of my husband’s government job and my job, and the quality of […]
Alzheimer’s: Preserving Family Memories
Every year, Carol Magro would prepare a delicious Italian feast for the holidays. Five years ago, her daughter Barbara noticed that her mother was getting tired, confused, and didn’t remember the ingredients for some of the dishes that she had prepared for nearly 50 years. A few months later Carol was diagnosed with early stage […]
Caring for a Difficult Parent
Q. Throughout my life, my mother has always been a difficult person. She complains about everything and is hyper-critical, overbearing and, as you can imagine, hard to get along with. She always compares me to my older sister, who is successful and has a big family, and berates me for being overweight and for taking […]
NASA SmartWatch, Implanted Health Devices, and Other New Technology for Seniors
Is Grandpa going gadget-crazy? Not quite yet, but we are getting there. According to a recent Pew Research survey, the number of older adults using the internet and related tech devices is increasing, with 59% of seniors reporting that they go online and 77% of older adults reporting that they have a cell phone. The Pew Research […]
Cool or Spooky? Funerals that Mimic Life
Q. My great aunt, Jane, is not afraid to talk about death. The things she loves most in life, besides family, are the Washington Redskins, playing canasta, and gardening. She often mentions how when she dies, she wants to be wearing her favorite football jersey while playing cards on the small patio next to her […]
Six Myths About Falls
Q. I recently visited my parents, who are in their 70’s, and have been worried ever since. My father, Sam, fell three times during the two days I was there. Often, my mother, Elaine, has lunch out and quilts with her friends, leaving dad home by himself. I questioned my mother about it and she said that falls are a […]
Filial Responsibility: Elderly Couple May Be Responsible For Son’s Medical Bills
Filial responsibility laws obligate adult children to pay for their indigent parents’ food, clothing, shelter and medical needs. When the children fail to do so, nursing homes, hospitals, and other creditors can file lawsuits against the adult children to recover the cost of caring for the parents. Not only can they sue the children for […]
Embracing Green Living as we Age
Q. My mother, Phyllis, is very environmentally conscious. She recycles and finds a creative use for nearly everything. Green living is among her top priorities. Ever since my father died, my mother has had a hard time living alone. She was diagnosed with Parkinson’s seven years ago and has trouble speaking, limited mobility, and needs […]
Farr Law Firm is Expanding to Help More Clients in More Areas!
We have two very special announcements to make . . . we are now handling Social Security Disability Claims and we now have an office in DC to meet with residents of the District of Columbia. Farr Law Firm Now Handling Social Security Disability Claims and Appeals: Please Join Us in Welcoming Attorney Howard Ackerman […]
Special Programs for Special Needs
Earlier this year, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) announced an alarming statistic regarding the prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), stating that is now affects 1 in 68 children (a 30% increase from 1 in 88 two years ago). The new CDC statistics raise significant concerns about access to care, because autism is a lifelong disorder and the […]
Joan Rivers Death Reminds us to Have End-of-Life Conversation
Q. I am very close with my in-laws, who are both in their late 70’s, and all I want for them (and for everyone I care about) is to live a long happy life. Unfortunately, the inevitable happens to us all, and when it does happen, I really want my entire family to be prepared […]
New PBS Documentary — “The Genius of Marian” — Explores How Alzheimer’s Runs in Families
Pam White and her son, Banker, by Marian Williams Steele. Many people fear that Alzheimer’s disease in the family may be passed on to children and grandchildren. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, research has shown that those who have a parent, brother, sister, or child with Alzheimer’s are more likely to develop the disease. Early-onset […]
Sandwich Generation: How to Survive Financially
Q. My husband and I are in our mid 40s and caught between raising our 10 and 14 year old children, working full-time, and caring for my father, who has Parkinson’s. We are particularly concerned about saving for college for our children and for our own retirement, while helping my father live safely and comfortably […]
Caring for Caregivers
Taking care of an older or ill family member can be enormously rewarding — but it can be physically and emotionally draining. And with the number of Americans age 65-plus projected to double by 2030, caregiving demands will only increase. Studies about caregivers show that: 40- 70% of caregivers show signs of depression; One-third of […]
Robin Williams: A Life Well-Lived and an Estate Well-Planned
Q. I read your special report on “Estate Planning Mistakes of Celebrities,” demonstrating why probate is such a nightmare and lessons that can be learned from the costly mistakes of celebrities. I appreciate all the advice on “what not to do” when it comes to estate planning. Are there any celebrities that offer examples of […]
“Ice Buckets” for Veterans
Veterans Twice as Likely to get ALS Joseph, a military veteran, noticed that he was experiencing tingling and numbness in his limbs. It didn’t take long before it progressed to difficulty walking, poor hand coordination, stumbling, and an increasingly limited range of motion. Joseph was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also called Lou Gehrig’s disease because of the baseball player who made it famous. Like Joseph, […]