ALZHEIMER'S. The word sends chills down your spine as nightmarish images of feeble-minded and helpless, lost souls spring to mind. Do you have a loved one lost to dementia? "Dementia: A Daughter's Journey to Prevention" chronicles the emotional journey of a daughter's struggle to understand her mother's illness "to fix" the memory problems. In denial, the author researched illnesses that mimic dementia and can be "fixed". GO BEHIND THE SCENES and learn the secrets to keeping your brain healthy and alert. THE PHRASE, SENIOR MOMENTS, is a common term used to describe senior citizens. Age-related, occasional senior moments happen to many seniors. Have you ever -Ignored these moments and passed them off as normal and expected? -Jokingly said, "Oops, excuse me; I'm having a senior moment?" -Misplaced your keys, yet again, and asked yourself; "Is this still another senior moment or, something else?" KNOWLEDGE IS POWER. Sandra's research is extensive and relevant in today's busy world. Within these pages you will learn some startling facts and helpful tips. -Alzheimer's is not a normal part of the aging process. -There is a protein that triggers brain cell growth to stop your brain from shrinking. -How to identify when senior moments occur too often to be normal. -When to take action to prevent a downward spiral of dementia. Author Sandra Pye, specializes in Dementia Prevention and Brain Health. To learn more, visit: http: //www.sandrapye.com/ I had the pleasure of editing Sandra's book, "Dementia: A Daughter's Journey to Prevention". When Sandra's beloved Mother succumbed to the ravages of Dementia and Alzheimer's, she set out to understand the disease to prevent it in her life and felt the need to share her story. Emotional and heartfelt, the book offers tips and suggestions to help prevent dementia. Some of the research is common sense and some findings may surprise you. Everyone fears this disease; set aside those fears and read this book. I highly recommend it. Eileen Caswell, Caswell Copy Services. http: //caswellcopy.com/ INTRODUCTION A Mother's Love and Devotion Growing up Mother worked hard to take care of my brother, two sisters and me. She got up at 5:00 am Monday through Friday to cook breakfast for us before the school bus came. She then carpooled to and from work, a 30-minute trip each way. If Dad, a farmer, didn't have dinner cooked when she got home at 6:00 pm, Mother jumped in and cooked dinner for all of us. To save money, Mother spent many hours after dinner sewing garments for us girls. I recall many nights getting up to find her still at the sewing machine at 1:00 am; determined to finish a skirt or a blouse for one of us to wear to school the next morning. I remember her coming home sometimes talking about her supervisor catching her dozing on the job and how hard it was to stay awake. As an adult, I recognize the sacrifices that Mother made for us. As a role model, she taught us the value of hard work, perseverance, and, family. However tired Mother may have been she was always kind, loving and patient. Looking back, I recognize that lack of sleep may have put Mother in the path of dementia and Alzheimer's. I Continued to Be in Denial We first noticed Mother having mild memory problems in early 2004 but accepted it due to her age. Mother still lived in her own home and took care of herself with my brother and sister living close by if needed. Summer of 2007 Mother's issues became more noticeable. As her illness progressed, I continued to deny what was happening. For every troubling sign of dementia, I observed, I believed the symptoms resulted from another illness. Determined, we kept searching for a solution to fix. Researching Other Illnesses that Could Mimic Dementia Wanting to understand what Mother was going through to comfort and help her, I focused on researching illness that mimicked dementia and never considered it. Whenever we heard or read a
About the Author: About the Author: Sandra Carol Pye loves talking about happy childhood memories growing up on the family farm in Pinehurst, GA. As a high school student in Vienna, GA, the author developed a love of writing. Sandra loved working on essay and short story homework assignments. Many times, she wrote while sitting on the creek bank listening to the peaceful sounds of nature. After high school, Sandra studied Business Administration and Accounting at South GA Tech, Americus. For a total of 33 years, she worked for the State of Georgia at Georgia Southern University, the University of Georgia, and the State Department of Education. Sandra also studied Real Estate at Georgia Southern University and spent four years working as a real estate agent at Coldwell Banker Tanner Realty, Statesboro. Sandra retired from the State Department of Education on December 31, 2006, two years earlier than planned when her Mother was in the mild stage of dementia. By retiring earlier, Sandra could spend quality time with her Mother while she was still alert and able to walk with occasional assistance. They enjoyed trips to Tybee Island and Jekyll Island; this special time was spent walking barefoot on the sandy beaches, shopping, eating lots of great food, and just being together. Also, there were a couple of trips to the mountains shared with siblings that were a real treat for all with lots of fun and laughter. In the words of the author, it was "a wonderful and grand adventure." Sandra's long-lost love of writing resurfaced after she retired. She enrolled in American Writers and Artists, Inc. (AWAI's) online writing classes, and completed the education and training for the AWAI Program in Web Copywriting. With her book completed, Sandra will continue her freelance copywriting business at SandraPye.com and specialize in spreading the word about Dementia Prevention and Brain Health. The author and her husband Joseph (Jr.) live in Statesboro, GA 75 miles west of Tybee Island, GA. They have a son Tim Pye, and a daughter Tammy Olliff. They are blessed to have Tim and Tammy and their families who also live in Statesboro.