Welcome to Experts Dig in with Doggies for Dementia with dementia expert Sarah Hyde-Williams. Today we talk about Lewy Body Dementia and What Caregivers Need to Know. I believe this is good information for all of us since there are over 1.4 million people in the US with Lewy Body Dementia. Even more people are directly and indirectly impacted.
Sarah has decades of experience in dementia and long term care. Lewy Body Dementia is a form of dementia which is often overlooked and under-diagnosed. Care can be complex for families and professional care providers, and is relatively unknown in our society. We know those with dementia and their care partners experience stigma, loneliness and isolation which can be as detrimental as any physical disease. We, at Doggies for Dementia Foundation believe the more we know, the better we do. The more we know, the less fear we experience and therefore the more love and connection we can have.
Who Are We?
About Family Caregiving
Family caregiving is something most of us didn’t prepare for and go into without full knowledge of everything we need to know. More and more people of all ages are becoming family caregivers for their ailing family members and caring for those with dementia has unique needs as well. There are many different (>400) types of dementia. We know most about Alzheimer’s Disease because it is the most common form of dementia. However, Lewy body dementias (LBD) affect an estimated 1.4 million individuals and their families in the United States. The only other form of degenerative dementia that is more common than LBD is Alzheimer’s disease (AD). LBD is an umbrella term for dementia associated with the presence of Lewy bodies (abnormal deposits of a protein called alpha-synuclein) in the brain. Lewy body dementias (LBD) are the second most common form of degenerative dementia. How is it that we still know so little about it? We aim to change this situation.
Experts Dig in with Doggies for Dementia supports families impacted by dementia including family caregivers. Even if you are not the direct caregiver for your loved one or they are in some form of long term care, you’ll want to know this information. The more we all know, the more compassionate and kind we can be. The stigma associated with dementia is BIG and our job is to learn more and do better.
About Sarah Hyde-Williams
We’re delighted to have our guest Sarah Hyde-Williams with Experts Dig in with Doggies for Dementia today. Sarah Hyde-Williams is a certified Montessori dementia care professional and a certified Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia care trainer at Senior Living Advisors of Austin. She is also president of the National Association of Senior Advisors, an educator and facilitator with the Lew Body Dementia Association. She facilitates a local Lewy Body Dementia support group and just so much more. Sarah is owner and founder of Senior Living Advisors of Austin.
We had so much to talk about last week, we continued in on one more week! Thank you Sarah! ?
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