Speaking Our Minds: Personal Reflections from Individuals With Alzheimer's
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Consumer Rating: 
By: Lisa Snyder
Format: Hardcover
From: Thorndike Press
Pub. Date: November 1999
From: Thorndike Press
Pub. Date: November 1999
Product Details:
Catalog: Book
Release Date: 1999-12
Media: Hardcover
Format: Large Print
Number Of Pages: 263
Ean: 9780786220663
Isbn: 078622066X
Catalog: Book
Release Date: 1999-12
Media: Hardcover
Format: Large Print
Number Of Pages: 263
Ean: 9780786220663
Isbn: 078622066X
ABOUT THE BOOK
EDITORIAL REVIEW
4 million people have been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in this country, yet most live in silent shadows, their stories untold.
In Speaking Our Minds, seven diagnosed individuals of various ages and backgrounds express their thoughts and feelings about what it is like to have Alzheimer's disease, to live with it day to day, and to cope with its impact on their lives. Although afflicted with the same disease, each person's experience is unique. Told with honesty and insight, their stories cover personal history, diagnosis, family and social interactions, philosophical and religious perspectives, and the many neurological and pychological dimensions of the disease that permeate their lives.
Transcribed from taped, in-home interviews, the seven narratives are interspersed with the author's own thoughts and observations about the different lives unfolding before her and of the disease whose common themes bind them all together. What emerges is a powerful and compassionate portrait of people forced to define themselves in new ways, not just by what has been lost, but also by what endures.
A unique and illuminating exploration of the subjective experience of Alzheimer's disease, Speaking Our Minds offers hope and understanding to anyone whose life has been irrevocably touched by it.
In Speaking Our Minds, seven diagnosed individuals of various ages and backgrounds express their thoughts and feelings about what it is like to have Alzheimer's disease, to live with it day to day, and to cope with its impact on their lives. Although afflicted with the same disease, each person's experience is unique. Told with honesty and insight, their stories cover personal history, diagnosis, family and social interactions, philosophical and religious perspectives, and the many neurological and pychological dimensions of the disease that permeate their lives.
Transcribed from taped, in-home interviews, the seven narratives are interspersed with the author's own thoughts and observations about the different lives unfolding before her and of the disease whose common themes bind them all together. What emerges is a powerful and compassionate portrait of people forced to define themselves in new ways, not just by what has been lost, but also by what endures.
A unique and illuminating exploration of the subjective experience of Alzheimer's disease, Speaking Our Minds offers hope and understanding to anyone whose life has been irrevocably touched by it.
USER REVIEWS
"This is a wonderful book from the perspective people suffering from Alzheimer's disease. I highly recommend this."
~ Written on 2008-06-03
~ Written on 2008-06-03
"This book is an easy yet insightful read that looks at the changes and roles facing those who care for loved ones with Alzheimer's. Not every chapter will apply to your situation, but this a valuable introduction that informers without overwhelming."
~ Written on 2007-12-14
~ Written on 2007-12-14
"Being recently dianosed with CRS, see my review of Shenk's "The Forgetting," I want to know from others who have been there, what is ahead of me. I am a member of two ALZ support groups, one mixed, and one for ALZers by themselves. Recently at a social party where I was experiencing data overload, I confided to a woman of my own age, that I was diagnosed with ALZ. She immediately said she was also, and we immediately began comparing symptoms, just as other ALZers do when their caregivers are not around!
This book fullfills my needs for the stories from those who are there. No story fits me exactly, yet parts of each show me that I am not unique, that I need not fit the popular mold, e.g. "Iris," of where and who I am. Just as the 42 stories at the rear of "Alcoholics Anonymous" give understanding and light to those afflicted with another incurable pathology, so do these bring hope and understanding to me: "I Am Not Alone!"
There is an abundance of tomes dealing with the diagnosis and care of ALZers. Those few books which let one ALZ speak to another ALZ are far between. ["Living in the Labyrinth" by McGowan is another in this small select company.]
If you, a friend, or a relative has ever been given a tentative or conclusive diagnosis of ALZ, run, don't walk, to get a copy of "Speaking Our Minds" to them. If like me, their reading capabilities have substantially deteriiorated, please, please read it to them!
"Reverse Mike""
~ Written on 2002-07-18
This book fullfills my needs for the stories from those who are there. No story fits me exactly, yet parts of each show me that I am not unique, that I need not fit the popular mold, e.g. "Iris," of where and who I am. Just as the 42 stories at the rear of "Alcoholics Anonymous" give understanding and light to those afflicted with another incurable pathology, so do these bring hope and understanding to me: "I Am Not Alone!"
There is an abundance of tomes dealing with the diagnosis and care of ALZers. Those few books which let one ALZ speak to another ALZ are far between. ["Living in the Labyrinth" by McGowan is another in this small select company.]
If you, a friend, or a relative has ever been given a tentative or conclusive diagnosis of ALZ, run, don't walk, to get a copy of "Speaking Our Minds" to them. If like me, their reading capabilities have substantially deteriiorated, please, please read it to them!
"Reverse Mike""
~ Written on 2002-07-18
"An interesting read that provides insight into the mind of Alzheimer patients-nicely done.."
~ Written on 2001-12-21
~ Written on 2001-12-21
"I want to know whether my mother is suffering, I want to know whether she is aware of her disease, and if so, what does she think of it. I want to know what, if anything, I can say or do to comfort her.
And after reading Lisa Snyder's book I still don't have a clue.
Mom's symptoms of Alzheimer's appeared a year and a half ago. She can not, or will not, talk about it. And in this short time her condition has deteriorated mightily. But she isn't like any of the subjects in this book. The people Lisa writes about seem to be at an earlier stage, and to be very self-aware and open to concepts such as therapy. I cannot draw much from their stories.
That said, the book is well written and interesting, and it gives me some comfort to read of people who are living fairly well with this very sad disease. For many readers this will be a 4- or 5- star book, but not for me, not at this time."
~ Written on 2001-11-15
And after reading Lisa Snyder's book I still don't have a clue.
Mom's symptoms of Alzheimer's appeared a year and a half ago. She can not, or will not, talk about it. And in this short time her condition has deteriorated mightily. But she isn't like any of the subjects in this book. The people Lisa writes about seem to be at an earlier stage, and to be very self-aware and open to concepts such as therapy. I cannot draw much from their stories.
That said, the book is well written and interesting, and it gives me some comfort to read of people who are living fairly well with this very sad disease. For many readers this will be a 4- or 5- star book, but not for me, not at this time."
~ Written on 2001-11-15