I am doing a series on how COVID is impacting those living with dementia, family caregivers, and professional caregivers. Today I am telling Kelsey’s story. She’s a Gerontology major, and we had a Zoom appointment recently. She’s 20 years old and works as a CNA (certified nursing assistant) at a nursing home. Kelsey is a […]
Author: Elaine M. Eshbaugh, PhD
Professor of Family Services & Gerontology at the University of Northern Iowa.
http://www.uni.edu/csbs/sahs/gerontology/faculty-directory/elaine-m-eshbaugh-henninger
Stories of COVID and Dementia: Becky and Don
As I continue to hear stories of individuals living with dementia and their care partners stumbling through the dark during the pandemic, I am at a loss as to how to be supportive. Sometimes people reach out to me. They want to tell me how they related to my blog. They want to tell me […]
Predictability in the Most Unpredictable of Times: Building the Plane While We Fly It
I am writing in defense of college students. I know what you’ve heard. They’re entitled brats. They don’t care about anyone but themselves. They’re out at the bars spreading COVID. Sure. That describes some college students. It doesn’t describe the majority. College during COVID isn’t what college is supposed to be. We’ve told our college […]
COVID in Nursing Homes: Perspectives from the Inside
One of my college students read a recent blog post I published on COVID and nursing homes. She works in a nursing home, and she shared some of her experiences with me. I asked if she might consider writing a blog post to share her perspectives. Here it is: I walk into another day at […]
Dementia, Election Anxiety, and Being Aware of Your Vibe
“In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: it goes on.”― Robert Frost I keep reminding myself of this as the United States is on edge with tomorrow’s election. (Maybe you’ve heard there’s an election tomorrow?) I feel like our nation has been divisively split into two camps. No matter who wins […]
Dementia, Masks, and a New Not-Normal in Nursing Homes
I wear a mask, and I encourage others to wear masks. None of what I am about to say changes that. But…masks are rough for people with dementia. Sure–it might be hard for someone with dementia to wear a mask correctly. But it’s more than that… Being around people wearing masks can be difficult, confusing, […]
When Family Caregivers Aren’t Allowed In
One of my students scheduled a Zoom appointment with me (because that’s what we do now, right?). She’s a freshman and she has a new job at a memory care community. She wants to do a good job. She loves the residents. She has great questions for me about how to handle difficult situations. Have […]
Dementia Caregiving and COVID
I haven’t given COVID as much attention in my blog as it deserves. I’ve started many posts and abandoned them because they felt inadequate. To be fair, I have gotten a bit of hate the few times I’ve written posts about COVID. Examples: I thought you were smarter than this. COVID isn’t any worse than […]
Grandmas, weddings, and dementia
I feel like this needs some attention because I get a lot of questions about it. Dementia and weddings. Grandma has dementia. Should I take her to her grandson’s wedding? Obviously, lot of people with dementia go to weddings and it’s a non-issue. People living with dementia even get married. However, as dementia progresses things […]
Limitations, Loss, and What is Left
“Don’t let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.” This one of my favorite quotes, and I try to follow the advice within. Last weekend I ran a half marathon. I almost didn’t. I had a few injuries. I hadn’t run for a couple weeks due to nerve pain. I knew the […]
