Too All Caregivers

[Guest guest]

Greetings: I don't know how many on this list are in a full caregiving

situation. I know when I am surfing on the Net I try to find

interesting sites that might give or renew insight into an ongoing

problem.

Today I received the following e-mail and I have copied it below for

those who are interested.

Subject: Caregiver Chats This Week

Date: Mon., 21 Feb. 2000 15:57:09 -0800

Organization: Web of Care

To: e-larry@...

Hello,

I understand that, like me, you communicate with a community of people

affected by a chronic disease or condition. I'm the Community

Coordinator at Web of Care, a virtual community for home caregivers, and

I'd appreciate it if you'd let your group know about any of the live

chats we're doing this week that may apply to them.

We have chats this week on AIDS, Caregiver Burnout, Cancer and

Arthritis, as well as " coffee break " chats where the topic is completely

open. We're also doing two special VIDEO CHATS this weekend on Heart

Disease and on Diabetes. Participants will still type in their chat --

but they'll see and hear the doctor respond on video. (Real Player).

Please scroll through the chat schedule, below, and pass the word as

appropriate.

All Web of Care chats are hosted by doctors or caregiving specialists.

They generally make an informal presentation, followed by lots of

questions and answers and interaction between the host and participants,

and among the participants themselves.

Thanks for your help. If there's anything I can do to support you and

your community, please let me know.

Larry Colcy

Outreach Director/Community Coordinator

Web of Care

http://www.webofcare.com

_________________________________________________________________________

*** WEB OF CARE CHAT SCHEDULE, FEBRUARY 21 - 26 ***

================================================

SPECIAL EVENTS - LIVE VIDEO CHATS THIS SATURDAY!

================================================

Join us next weekend for our first two live video chats!

Chats are a great way to get instant, direct answers to your medical

questions. Next weekend, we're presenting two live chats where you'll

be able to see and hear our expert host answer questions typed in by

participants like you.

There will be two video chats:

" DIABETES - PREVENTING COMPLICATIONS "

Saturday, February 26 --3:00 pm Eastern/2:00 pm Central/1:00 pm

Mountain/12:00 Pacific

Host: Dr. Sol Stern, Chief of Family Medicine at the Halton

Healthcare Services Corporation

Learn about the various complications that diabetics face, how to

prevent them, and how to cope with them when they occur. Dr. Stern will

answer your questions, and give you some practical tips.

Dr. Stern will talk about kidney disease, eyesight, foot ulcers and

cardiovascular disease. He'll answer any questions you may have about

caring for yourself or a loved one.

There will also be lots of other diabetics, and people that care for

diabetics, for you to meet and share experiences with.

* * * *

" HEART DISEASE DOs and Don'ts " -- Saturday, February 26

4:30 pm Eastern/3:30 pm Central/2:30 pm Mountain/1:30 Pacific

Host: Dr. Sol Stern

There are two keys to successful living with heart disease and stroke.

First is attitude; second is treatment. Join Dr. Stern for information

and advice on diet, exercise, medication, and more.

________________________________________________________________

" FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN: PALLIATIVE CARE FOR PEOPLE WITH AIDS "

Monday, February 21

8:00 pm Eastern/7:00 pm Central/6:00 pm Mountain/5:00 pm Pacific

Host: Dr. Sol Stern

No one dies of AIDS - they succumb to complications of a weakened immune

system caused by the AIDS virus. As with many terminal conditions, fear

about how the disease will progress - not knowing what's around the next

corner - is a major concern for AIDS patients and their caregivers.

For advice on how to deal with the unknown, as well as how to provide

appropriate nutrition, hygiene and exercise, please join us for an

informal chat about these and other issues. Palliative care specialist

Dr. Sol Stern will lead an informal discussion of issues and concerns

affecting people caring for

people with AIDS.

Although the chat will focus primarily on AIDS, the issues discussed

will be of interest to all caregivers helping a loved one through their

final weeks or months.

Dr. Stern is a Family Physician and a Palliative Care specialist. He

has helped numerous AIDS patients and their caregivers.

________________________________________________________________

" PREVENTING CAREGIVER BURNOUT "

Wednesday, February 23

8:00 pm Eastern/7:00 pm Central/6:00 pm Mountain/5:00 pm Pacific

Host: , Caregiving Specialist

You're no good to them, if you're not good to yourself! Join us for a

chat about how to recognize the symptoms of burnout - and how to avoid

burning out yourself.

Guilt, workload, criticism from well-meaning friends and relatives, role

reversal - all of these factors can lead to frustration, anxiety and

exhaustion. Host will help you develop strategies for

dealing with these problems

before they occur. There will also be lots of other caregivers on hand

who will also have stories to tell and suggestions to share.

________________________________________________________________

" COPING WITH CANCER "

Thursday, February 24

8:00 pm Eastern/7:00 pm Central/6:00 pm Mountain/5:00 pm Pacific

Host: Dr. Jiade Lu, Radiation Oncologist

If you have questions about the treatment your loved one is receiving,

or about alternative treatments that you have heard of or read about,

then please drop by and ask Dr. Lu.

Dr. Lu will also be talking about how to avoid stress, how to deal with

cancer fatigue, evaluating alternative therapies, and the importance of

proper nutrition, especially during chemotherapy.

By joining this chat, you will also have the opportunity to meet other

caregivers coping with many of the same daily challenges that you face.

________________________________________________________________

" EXERCISE TIPS FOR HEART PATIENTS "

Monday, February 21

5:30 pm EST/4:30 pm CST/3:30 pm MST/2:30 pm PST

Host: Meena Sran, Physical Therapist

Exercise is often perceived by those who need it most as a painful or

exhausting process. Join us for tips and suggestions on how you, or the

person you care for, can feel better and reduce their risks by

increasing their physical activity.

For those who are at high risk of cardiovascular disease, a sensible

program of exercise can help reduce that risk. For those who have had a

heart attack or have other symptoms of coronary heart disease, a

moderate exercise program can slow or even partially reverse the loss of

cardiac function.

Regular exercise may also help control a host of other risk factors for

coronary heart disease, including obesity, stress, high blood pressure,

and high levels of blood lipids, including cholesterol and

triglycerides.

* * * *

" EXERCISE TIPS FOR ARTHRITIS PATIENTS "

Saturday, February 26

2:30 am Eastern/1:30 am Central/12:30 am Mountain/11:30 am Pacific

Host: Meena Sran, Physical Therapist

People with arthritis should avoid staying in one position for a long

time. Even walking around the room once every half hour can prevent

stiffness in the knees, hips and neck. Join this informal chat, and

learn about simple exercises that can help reduce pain and really

improve physical well-being.

Physical Therapist Meena Sran will suggest simple exercises, and

answer questions like:

- How can hydrotherapy help arthritic joints?

- How do you know if you have rheumatoid arthritis or osteoarthritis?

- If you are developing deformities in your joints (or have deformities

already) what can be done to help?

________________________________________________________________

" CAREGIVER COFFEE BREAKS "

Every Tuesday at 1:30 pm EST (10:30 am PST) and

Every Thursday at 4:00 pm EST (1:00 PST)

Open chat - no host.

If you're having a difficult day, it might help to tell someone about it

-- someone that understands the daily challenges of caregiving as well

as you do. And of course, if you're having a particularly good day,

we'd all love to share your joy. Take a mid-day break and join other

caregivers online!

* * *

" THE MEN'S ROOM -- CAREGIVER COFFEE BREAK - FOR MALE CAREGIVERS "

Every Wednesday at 1:30 pm EST (10:30 am PST)

Host: Don Duckett, Western Washington Male Caregivers Support Group

Husbands, brothers and sons are often even less prepared for caregiving

than women. Playing a nurturing role, and even managing a household,

can be foreign territory for men. To talk about caregiving from a man's

perspective, drop by any Wednesday!

Host Don Duckett has been caring for his wife, who has a form of

dementia (Pick's Disease), for several years. Like most caregivers, he

was thrown into his caregiving role with no preparation and has had to

learn daily caregiving skills like preparing and feeding meals.

Be Blest, D.

--

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~\

~~~~~

" Life is a succession of lessons which must be lived to be understood. "

~ Helen Keller ~

" There are no mistakes, no coincidences.

All events are blessings given to us to learn from. "

~ Kubler-Ross ~

These are my three treasures

Compassion, frugality and humility.

Being compassionate one has courage,

Being frugal one has abundance.

Being humble one becomes the chief of all vessels.

~ Lao Tzu ~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~\

~~~~~~