LEST WE FORGET

Despite it being a chilly morning, my husband and I set out for the Walk to End Alzheimers.
It warmed my heart to see men, women and children out in mass out for the same cause. People had colorful pinwheel flowers in honor, memory or in support of loved ones. They were placed in the ground in a make shift garden… if only the flowers could speak. The stories to be told far surpassed the people represented there. Today I want to speak on behalf of caregivers.

For those with the disease it is easy to forget to do the things they need to do or remember that they did them. Unfortunately, caregivers forget to do the things they need to do also. The most important thing is to take care of themselves. Yes, easier said than done, but it must be done.

You can consider yourself blessed if you are not related to one of the 80,000 people in South Carolina or the 5.2 million people in the US who are living with Alzheimers. On the other hand you can consider yourself a blessing if you helped someone who is. There are simple ways to help both the caregiver and/or the person with the illness: A visit, phone calls, taking them for a walk, run errands, help with child care, help with doctor’s appointments, bring over a meal, gift certificate for a massage, sitting to give caregiver a few hours break, listening.

People don’t want to talk about these things especially when it doesn’t affect them but lest we forget,
Alzheimers like many other diseases does not discriminate. So as we do what we can to take care of ourselves by exercising e and eating right we should also do what we can to support those plagued by the disease with a humility that “ but for the grace of God there go I.”