Confessions of an Alzheimer Coach

Now that the emotional upheaval of Bette's death a year ago in January, I am ready to complete the story of her and me on the journey of Alzheimer's. Bette was my mother in law and one challenging patient with Alzheimer's. Being an in law doesn't make caring easier as one is not the family (after all she was not MY mother). This meant dealing with different views of what she needed(or didn't need as they saw it), and working around family dynamics; minimizing the progression of the disease, refusing what I felt were intelligent suggestions, and downright annoyance at my observations about what her needs were. I am writing it to relieve other caregivers of the doubt about their caregiving. I discovered that even with a good head knowledge of the affects of Alzheimer's on the patient and the family, and ability to help families solve challenging behaviors, when the coach is emotionally involved, things are a lot different. Emotions run high; conflict within the family isn't easy to deal with, and being a professional is sometimes a liabiity.
So, wish me luck and good writing so I can share my story with you. I think you'll be relieved to find how many mistakes we made, and how much I learned. Look for its completion hopefully this year.