National Alzheimer’s & Family Caregiver Month – Author Lori LeBey & Storytelling, Lisa Tyburksi on the Town Square dementia village, AlzAuthors with Marianne Sciucco
Our National Family Caregiver Month & National Alzheimer’s Month episode is a BIG one! Sherri Snelling, corporate gerontologist and “Caregiving Club On Air” podcast host, interviews the following guests on this episode:
1. Lisa Tyburski of George Glenner Centers and the Town Square for Dementia Day Care Villages – an innovative model for caring for those with Alzheimer’s in an active, engaging environment (think Disneyland for Dementia).
2. Lori La Bey – a long-time colleague in dementia caregiving and a caregiver for her late mom with Alzheimer’s. Lori is a dear friend who has a great book out that engages all ages on Alzheimer’s called “Betty the Bald Chicken – Lessons in How to Care” we’re going to talk to her about that and the insights she has from her work and podcast “Alzheimer’s Speaks”
3. Marianne Sciucco, founder of AlzAuthors, who is going to tell us how her site is a great resource for those living with Alzheimer’s and those caring for someone with dementia – a great interview to celebrate Nov 1 National Authors Day and November National Family Stories Month
Lisa Tyburski – Glenner Centers and Town Square 
Lori La Bey – Alzheimer’s Speaks & Author 
Marianne Sciucco – AlzAuthors
Caregiver Wellness News
In celebration of National Family Caregiver Month, the Caregiver Action Network (CAN) is promoting its annual awareness campaign to observe the contributions to society of the 53 million Americans providing unpaid care to an adult family member. This year’s campaign theme is #CaregiversConnect. Find more resources and a tool kit here.
On November 5 we have Daylight Savings Time where we turn the clocks back one hour. While we feel like we get an extra hour of sleep we also feel as if we have lost some of the daylight in our day which boosts our mood and provides other healthful benefits. Sherri shares the latest study on light therapy showing that it can decrease depression by 20% and mentions there are other studies being conducted on light therapy and Alzheimer’s patients to treat sundowning.
Well Home Design News
As mentioned during the podcast, Sherri recorded a special free webinar for the family caregivers of those with dementia and Alzheimer’s to create a Dementia Friendly Design at Home. It includes some of the information from her new book, Me Time Monday, such as the 5 C’s of age-friendly design: CURVES, CONTRAST, COLOR, CLUTTER-FREE and COMFORT SOURCES:
Sherri also highlights the importance for family caregivers to create a “snug spot” within your home – maybe a cozy reading nook or other place of sanctuary and respite. Read Sherri’s blog on cozy reading nooks.
Watch the Dementia Friendly Home Design webinar:
If you want to learn more about how to declutter your home or your loved one’s home, check out our S2, Ep 2 interview with Matt Paxton of TV’s “Legacy List.”
If you want to hear more about color psychology and home design, check out our S3, Ep 22 interview with Kathryn Grube of Functional Color Solutions.
If you want to hear more about universal design for aging in place, check out our S2, Ep 15 interview with Rosemarie Rosetti, creator of the Universal Design Living Lab (her home!).
Me Time Monday Wellness Hack
As always, we end our episode with our Me Time Monday Wellness Hack. This episode we focus on November National Family Caregiver Month. Sherri explains the 7 A’s of Caregiving and her 7 elements for life balance and wellness from her new book, Me Time Monday.
RESOURCE LINKS
George Glenner Centers – three locations in Southern California and creator of the Town Square
Town Square – innovation adult day care for dementia clients franchising across the country
“Alzheimer’s Speaks” is where you can find all of Lori La Bey’s great work and radio show and her book,
“Betty the Bald Chicken – Lessons in How to Care” can be found here on Amazon and other booksellers
AlzAuthors – find books, authors, TV shows, movies and other helpful resources along with a community of book lovers
Click here to find out where to buy Sherri’s Me Time Monday book and learn more about the workshops
Sherri’s Me Time Monday book GoodReads page
Caregiver Action Network (CAN)
Alzheimer’s Association – support groups, helpful information for family caregivers
Elder Care Locator – eldercare.gov or call 1-800-677-1116
Sherri’s articles related to this episode
Alzheimer’s
Here is a full list with links to all of Sherri’s articles on Alzheimer’s including recent research, celebrities who are caregivers for someone with Alzheimer’s or dementia (as well as her red carpet celebrity interviews) and Sherri’s appearance as an Alzheimer’s and caregiver expert on shows such as “The Doctors”
Here is the article Sherri wrote when the Town Square first opened: First U.S. Dementia Village (Forbes, 2017)
Caregiver Wellness
Caregiver Tipping Points (Forbes)
Sandwich Generation Juggling Act (Forbes)
7 Tips to Avoid Sandwich Generation Burn-out (USA Today)
Finding Happiness As a Caregiver (Forbes.com)
Happiness article (Spanish translation for Univision (Univision.com)
Environmental Wellness
Creating Dementia Friendly Home Design (USA Today)
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