I invite you to please log onto the home page - www.thealzheimerspouse.com, and read today's 2nd Anniversary blog. Please read it before you comment, as it has a lot in it, and it is a testament to you and your strengths. Thank you.
Congratulations Joan! As a fairly new member of this group, I am constantly amazed at what you have created. The scope of information available here far surpases what you can learn at any doctor's appointment. I have brought info, as have others to my doctor and they appreciated what I learn. I have been blown away by the depth of love and caring shown by this FAMILY for me and others such as Mary. The placement, illness or death of a spouse or family member are cared about to an extent that far exceeds what many of us receive from out biological families and friends. Thank you, thank you, thank you. May your Higher Power continue to give you the strength, wisdom and inspiration to keep going and celebrate many more anniversaries. With much love and gratitude, Susan
Joan, You wrote about what all of us have done to help each other, but you are the one who gave us the opportunities to do what we've done. I, for one, can never thank you enough for this site. I listen to others with AD spouses and they don't have nearly the knowledge or support I have - all because of you! I tell everyone I know about this site. Thank you!
I started peeking in when the site just started and was confused as to how to go about getting involved-or even if I wanted to. I took the plunge and never regretted it. As the site matured I learned so much and met such good cyber friends. Thanks, Joan
Joan, thank you from the bottom of my heart. You have done so very much for so very many. I initially was on another website - and someone referred me to yours. To that person, I am forever grateful. Many have traversed this road for so many years longer than me and for their experience I will be eternally thankful, and salute them for their steadfastness and loving caregiving.
I wish only the best for you and Sid and may we all come out after AD with the strength, emotion and loving kindness that you have so generously helped to provide.
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU Joan! Hands down this website has been the most helpful/hopeful thing that has happened to me on this journey. I have learned so much here, gotten much needed support right when I needed it, made friends, laughed, cried and all the emotions in between.
As I said on another post, coming to the message boards has allowed me on more than one occasion to piece the tattered shreds of my sanity back together. I am very grateful to be a member of this community. You have done a wonderful thing Joan!
Joan may there be many many more aniveraries in the future! me too - i cant imagine life without the cyber friendships made here. venting ranting crying laughing. we would individually surely go insane without the ability to come here and journey together. to the oldies, newcomers and those who have not yet found this refuge you are a hero. divvi
Joan, I agree with all of the above. I get much more out of this site than I do out of the support group I go to. The last 2 times I went to support group I was the only caregiver, discussing my problems with the group leader. This was somewhat helpful, but I miss the larger group discussions. I have always been the only male caregiver in the group.
Joan, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for establishing this website, which has been my lifeline in dealing with my husband's Alzheimer's Disease. I have learned so much from so many who were/are farther along on the road than we are. The Caregiver Tips, the medical alert dog tags/bracelets. the emergency medical information sheets, the driving issue, the scrapbooks/notebooks, "the reason button is broken," "pharmacology is our friend" and so many others too numerous to name. And to try not to argue and keep peace in the home at all costs. I had to add that one!
We all became a family here. Some have come and gone, some lurk, and some of us stay - daily - to get help and to offer help to those in need. Thank you for giving us this site.
I personally have experienced the deep love and caring in my personal time of need, and I could feel the hugs through cyberspace. The words, thoughts and prayers expressed here kept me going when I was at my lowest ebb.
This website is our home base. Our gratitude to you, Joan, is not measurable. Thank you again!
I'm a newcomer but it's hard for me to believe I've only been here a couple weeks. All day I find myself secretly looking forward to the moments when I will be able to get at the computer and find out what's happening on the site. Joan, congratulations on your child's second birthday. And thank you so much, as so many have said here already. I haven't been able to find anything similar in Holland, which would be useful because the financial and medical issues (and so much else) are different here. And I feel so sorry for anyone who has not been able to find the information and support that I've been finding here. I've been wondering if I can find the strength and inspiration to start a Dutch-language site for Holland. Have you heard about such sites in other countries? Jeanette
No, I haven't heard of this type of site in other countries. Actually, it is pretty unique to this country. I will do some research about getting this site translated into other languages. Not sure how that works, but I'm pretty sure it is possible.
Joan, do you mean translating the structure of the website? And/or your blog? As soon as people would start posting, the posts would be in the country's language. And some of the informative sites that you have on the home page would be relevant (and don't really have to be translated) but a lot of them are country-specific. There are Alzheimer forums here but they are not as intensively used as this one and there are none for spouses specifically. On the Dutch Alzheimer Association site there is one THREAD that is supposed to be for spouses, but other people post on it as well.
Congratulations! And thank you so very much. I live about 30 miles from the nearest support group that meets once a month. I felt pretty much alone and knew I'd never find the support. Once I found this site it offers everything I need. Again, THANK YOU, JOAN!!
Congratulations! And Thank you. There was no support group to fit our circumstances when Dh was Dx'd with his Mental Illness. I managed. When the new Dx--Vascular Dementia was added in 2006, support group participation was recommended. There are lots in our area. Draw backs--no one to stay with DH at time of meetings, or outside public transpo range, or at night--and not feasible 1/2 the year because of weather influences on my navigational abilities. So I came to the computer and found a support site. The first was not a good fit, but it helped. And then, someone who had found The Alzheimer Spouse site, told me about it and suggested I check it out. Persisted in suggesting I lurk and see what I thought. I did. And now I have a whole family who "get it"; "who care"; and have become a vital part of my life. They are here night and day; rain, shine, or snow; regardless of everything going on in their busy lives. I don't want to even think what my life would be without this site--without all of us here. Again, Thank you, Joan, for creating this site and nurturing its growth. Carosi
Last night while I was in a panic about Katrina, I posted & ate chocolates. They were Dove Promises chocolates & inside each has a message on the foil. One reminded me of Joan, & I saved it. It said, Don't go where the road leads, rather go where there is no road and make a trail. Joan made a trail.
The others that I liked were, It's not only okay to be different, but fantastic! And...Too much of a good thing is wonderful. And...The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. My last one said, Have another! Whoops.
Joan, thank you so much for starting this site. I've learned more from it than I could ever imagine. I don't think I could manage without coming here every single day.
Dear Joan: I went thru the spousal caregiving somewhat alone--briefly went to a spousal support group, it was OK--fortunately had our adult children available, but everything was for parents--and I don't mean to minimize that, but it's not the same--as we all know. Like Joan, writing helped, sometimes all night, but except for the children, no one else understood AD, much less how it impacted a marriage, who can you talk to about such things, not even the children, after all, it was their father, too, they had their own hurts. So the spillover is here for me and I applaud you, Joan, far and above anything you may have envisioned, this is a blessed spot.
thank you Joan I was at a loss and so confused,just moved back home from Az. and found your site what a blessing it has been, I haven`t been on many months , I felt at home the very day I joined, it helped me to put my feelings in writings and getting so much support from all my cyber family, again thanks,thanks,thanks. Gail
Thank you Joan! In addition to the warmth and support we all get here, we also thank you Joan for the amazing wealth of information you have gathered (with help from all the posters), and what's really impressive is that it's up-to-date and accurate information. I live in a large city and attend several caregiver conferences a year put on by the local Alz. Assoc, churches, etc. and lately everytime I go to one I leave thinking "I already know all that, thanks to Joan's website". I feel sorry for the caregivers who have no support, and in some cases, don't know where to begin looking for support, so I tell lots of people about the website. THANKS AGAIN!!!!!
Congratulations Joan. This site has been invaluable. I came across it as I sifted through many other sites but just wasn't finding anything of value. Now I only go to 1 site. Not much time to participate but still able to glean valuable information here. Thanks Joan, keep up the good work. Thenneck