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they are forced to play, then feel guilty
about their anger, according to Olson.
"Sons and daughters feel sadness
over the loss of the relationship they
once had with their parents," she said.
"Spouses who have lost husbands and
wives to dementia can be very lonely.
Financial issues are also a concern."
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Support Program
The Brown program sponsors ongo-
ing caregiver support groups at both
facilities. Morse found the groups
extremely beneficial.
"It helped me realize I'm not the
only one," he said.
The Brown program staff also pro- .
vides emotional support for the
patients.
"Many of them experience anxiety;
they're aware that they're becoming
forgetful and confused," said Olson.
"Sometimes they are angry, upset,
scared, even tearful. We encourage
them to talk about their feelings, and
we provide a lot of reassurance."
Zack still recalls the day her mother
turned to her and said, "Something's
happened to me, hasn't it?"
Although there are several kinds of
dementia, Alzheimer's is the most
common. At present there is no cure
for it, although some medications can
be helpful in the early stages, accord-
ing to Dr. Marvin Trimas, a
Farmington Hills physician who spe--
cializes in geriatrics.
If dementia is suspected, Dr. Trimas
stresses the importance of a thorough
medical evaluation, since some forms
of memory loss are.very treatable,
especially those caused by conditions
such as thyroid disease, diabetes, B-12
deficiency, congestive heart failure and
certain pulmonary diseases.
Some of the early symptoms of
dementia include disorientation,
short-term memory loss, difficulty
with language retrieval, ritualized or
repetitive behavior, agitation, especial-
ly in the later part of the day (also
called "sundowner's syndrome), delu-
sions, aggression and other socially
inappropriate conduct.
Because depression can be a side
effect of dementia, the Brown pro-
gram provides volunteer opportunities
so clients can continue to feel useful
and productive. Lillian Morse, for
example, visits local nursery schools to
read to preschoolers three times a
week.
"Activities like this enable people
with dementia to perform roles that
were important to them earlier in
their lives," said Peter Ostrow.
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