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Summary: Home Care
Review: I am 80, not 8.This book encouraged me to take my wife out of a nursing home and arrange to care for her at home with a caregiver like Ariana. Marcell explains how it can be done and our grown son and daughter are grateful that our caregiver will be available full time if I go first.
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Summary: IF YOU ARE A CARETAKER....
Review: I laughed and cried through-out this entire book. So much of it is exactly what we have lived through in taking care of an elderly demented family member in our home. So much of dementia is kept "under wraps" or "hush-hush" in our society that families have no clue how to recognize it, how to cope, or where to go for help. This books gives information on how to deal with specific problems that are so common with dementia-related illnesses. It is also written with an awesome sense of humor and love. I highly recommend it!
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Summary: Comfort in Suffering
Review: Elder Rage was without doubt one of the best books I have read this year. The author is humorous and amusing. I bought this book thinking it sounded like a "self help" type book for an adult child trying to cope with their parent aging process. I was quite happy to find this book was a easy read and that it kept me entertained while I was finding out how a sane person copes with a parent suffering from dementia. I felt somewhat alone until I read this book. The book kept my interest and surprising I read it in about three days. I usually do not go through a book that fast. I usually am too busy for recreational reading and factual reading is somewhat slow. I found it entertaining and moving. I actually cried when the author described her feelings about her mother. The author's father is quite a bit like my stepfather and I found some of her suggestions helpful. This is a subject that needs to be written about. So many people think that when they retire they are going into the Golden Years; quite the opposite. There are many of use who are in the Sandwich Generation between our aging parents and our adult children and that's a rough position to be in. I liked the humor and I think she was brillant in writing this book. I have recommended it to many of my friends and family. I would like her to write a sequel to the book. The author was written up in AARP just after I read the book. I hope she gets many speaking engagements as a result of her work. The subject matter of the book is an often neglected subject. I feel that the book is timely in that many of us "baby boomers" are caring for elderly parents and unfortunately modern medicine keeps a person alive but doesn't keep the mind alert.
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Summary: For anyone with parents/inlaws, BUY THIS BOOK - NOW!
Review: We can't say 'thank you' enough to Jacqueline for this book.Unhappily, my inlaws became ill within a year of each other. Father-inlaw diagnosed with Colon Cancer, mother-inlaw had 2 severe strokes. However, we could see years prior to this that mother-inlaw was becoming very forgetful and thought she was going to wind up with Alzheimers; the strokes were due to a blocked carotid artery,and she was left with severe dementia with aggresion, mood swings, and tendencies of violent behavior. I only wish I found Jacqueline's book 6 months ago. My hubby is an only child,and we are their only relatives, which left us as their primary caregivers. Jacqueline's experiences are parallel to and in some cases the SAME EXACT as what we went through and are still going thru. Jacqueline's experiences are woven with humor and TV / movie 'lines' that makes me laugh...and for many months, as a primary caregiver, all I wanted to do was cry. Towards the back of the book are many, many references for assistance in helping loved ones who are going through the dementias (Alzheimer's and other-wise), including agencies and Internet sites. I HIGHLY recommend this book for everyone. Jacqueline has learned the hard way what to do and how to do things for loved ones who are suffering dementia and folks needing elder care. Also, through her hard work and the wonderful assistance of Ariana - the home care provider for her parents - we've learned that institutionalized care isn't the best way to go. For the dignity of the loved ones requiring care, staying at home as long as medically possible is more loving. Many states now are assisting with folks staying at home rather than becoming nursing home patients or assisted living / managed care clients. If you DON'T want to do things the hard way in managing Alzheimer's / dementia / elder care patients, GET JACQUELINE'S BOOK - it's worth more than what it's priced at.
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Summary: Reflections never lie
Review: Facinating and truthful, this book reflects the truth behind the despair and ugliness of a disease that is rampant in this United States. Every bit of her revealing story reflects what is taking place in our lives. My husband's mother fought it seven years ago and now his father is losing the battle. Drawn to her explainations and the suspense-filled outcomes, I read her book in a matter of days despite working full time, attending school full time and assisting with caring for my father-in-law. Many of the battles she undertook in caring for her parents are real in every sense. We have only just begun. We love and honor our parents and look forward towards this chance to give back to them what they have provided for us. Thank you Jackie. Great Job!
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Summary: I'm not alone!
Review: The only reason this is not a 5 star book is the foul language in places. However, it is very realistic. For someone with an elderly parent, this is an encouragement that the frustrations I am going thru are not unique. There are some excellent ideas for keeping a parent in theirown home safely for as long as possible and how to handle their behavior challenges. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone with parents over 70!
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Summary: HELPFUL, INSIGHTFUL AND INSPIRING!
Review: Today, we live in such a fast-paced society, forever balancing our own homelife and that of our children, with work schedules, school events, household chores and multiple obligations. All of a sudden, we find our own parent(s)who were once so strong and reliant, have seemingly become the child and the roles have reversed. It is a natural instint of children to want to please their parent(s), so out of parental love, and with a heartfelt sense of gratitude, responsibility and obligation, we take on the additional role of caregiver, mentor, teacher, advisor, and confident to our aging parent(s). Jacqueline Marcell has a way of making you feel sane again, and at the same time, her wit and writing style will capture your heart and help you to understand you are not alone. Each of us must deal with the situation in our own way, depending on our financial situation, available resources, position in the life's cycle and the allowable time we have to take on the extra responsibility. However, the first-hand experiences of someone who has "been there and done that" can help tremendously. Over the course of ten years, I watched my father regress, through cancer and age, from a strong, independent, brilliant, business professional to a babbling, hallucinating, demanding, dictator. There comes a time, when constant, professional, around-the-clock care is required, that it may necessary to place the parent in institutionalized care. That decision, in itself, ususally leaves the family with mixed feelings of love and guilt, frustration and betrayal, and a host of other unanticipated, gut-wrenching emotions. This book helps put the "rage" and other mixed emotions in a much clearer perspective, and leaves you with the understanding it is a natural reaction to feel all those things, it's how you deal with those feelings that is important. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is caring for, or anticipating the care of, an aging parent(s). It probably will not change the inevitable chain of events, but it may bring a sense of balance to your life.
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Summary: Caregivers are not alone!
Review: I absolutely couldn't put the book down until I finished it and felt so much better about my own situation caring for elder parents. I had thought I was alone and now realize there are so many others who completely understand what I'm going through! In particular I am pleased that the book offers so much practical advice and gives insight to the experience of both the sufferer and the caretaker.
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Summary: More than a personal memoir and eventual success story
Review: In Elder Rage: How To Survive Caring For Aging Parents, Jacqueline Marcell shares the story of her shocking discovery of how the lives of her elderly parents had deteriorated with the onset of her father's dementia and inability to continue to care for her ailing mother. Elder Rage is more than a personal memoir and eventual success story, it is also a revelation into one of today's rapidly burgeoning problems of elder care and what resources are available for caregivers in dealing with problems of their parent's senility, character disorders, and age-based health issues. Of special value is the addendum "A Physician's Guide To Treating Aggression In Dementia With The Proper Medications" by former Medical Director of the UC Irvine Alzheimer's Clinic, Rodman Shankle, M.D. Elder Rage is very highly recommended reading for anyone concerned about dealing with an aging parent's needs when impacted by dementia or Alzheimers.
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Summary: Worth reading
Review: My cousin told me about this book. I haven't read the whole book but I started using the resource section and found it to be invaluable .The part of the story I have read was funny and helpful. The question and answer section is where I think you should start with this book. I think the idea of behavior modification as a tool for dealing with difficult parents is a breakthrough idea. I have looked at tons of these kinds of books and this is the one I would recommend.
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