Re: Dementia without drugs (w/quick response)

[Guest guest]

Ruth writes:

<<I read this post with interest. My mother has been dx with mixed dementia and

is at the point of needing to move from an assisted living arrangement to a

dementia care residence. She takes 150 mg Effexor per day and has taken this AD

for at least 7 years. I know from my own experience how difficult it is to get

off of this med like it messed me up in terms of my own short term memory etc...

- i finally had to do a crossover to Prozac to gett off the stuff -my question

for her is, can we do a direct crossover to the Prozac from the 150 mg Effexor

and then taper the prozac as it has a longer half life? It would be very

difficult to do the type of tapering I had to do given her situation. She also

takes Namenda and galantamine, and I don't know how much help they are at this

point, either. Do you have any familiarity with tapering those meds?

Thank you,>>

responds:

** Ruth, never ever solicit information for your mother, who is elderly,

through a mailing list or email in general. If anyone were to give you advice,

that person would be highly irresponsible and would be a risk to your mother's

life and well-being.

People who are elderly usually have some health issues and can be on other

drugs. Even if not, they are more fragile than younger adults so are not worked

with in the same ways. I work with people of later years privately only because

of the amount of time and attention that goes into collecting all the

information and closely guiding the withdrawal (even if she wasn't older, the

fact that she's on at least 2 other drugs complicates the case enough to warrant

working privately). If you want to pursue it this way, please let me know.

Regards,

>

> *Moving Beyond Chemical Restraints in Nursing Homes

> **(reprinted from the Star Tribune)

>

> **Nursing homes are seeking to end the stupor*

> WARREN WOLFE, Star Tribune

>

> The aged woman had stopped biting aides and hitting other residents. That

> was the good news.

>

> But in the North Shore nursing home's efforts to achieve peace, she and many

> other residents were drugged into a stupor -- sleepy, lethargic, with little

> interest in food, activities and other people.

>

> " You see that in just about any nursing home,'' said Eva Lanigan, a nurse

> and resident care coordinator at Sunrise Home in Two Harbors, Minn. " But

> what kind of quality of life is that? "

>

> Working with a psychiatrist and a pharmacist, Lanigan started a project last

> year to find other ways to ease the yelling, moaning, crying, spitting,

> biting and other disruptive behavior that sometimes accompany dementia.

>

> They wanted to replace drugs with aromatherapy, massage, games, exercise,

> personal attention, better pain control and other techniques. The entire

> staff was trained and encouraged to interact with residents with dementia.

>

> Within six months, they eliminated antipsychotic drugs and cut the use of

> antidepressants by half. The result, Lanigan said: " The chaos level is down,

> but the noise is up -- the noise of people laughing, talking, much more

> engaged with life. It's amazing. "

>

> Now the home's operator, Shoreview-based Ecumen, has started a project

> called Awakenings throughout its 15 long-term care nursing homes. It's based

> on Lanigan's work and funded with a two-year, $3.7 million state grant.

>

> " We saw what Eva was doing -- something everybody in the industry talks

> about -- and we were impressed, " said Mick Finn, an Ecumen vice president.

> " We said, 'Hey, this is real. Can we all do this?' "

>

> The dangers of drugs

>

> Powerful antipsychotic drugs have been used for years to reduce agitation,

> hallucinations and other debilitating symptoms among people with mental

> illnesses.

>

> They also are widely used " off label " to quell disruptive behavior among

> people with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia.

>

> Medicare spends more than $5 billion a year on those drugs for its

> beneficiaries, including about 30 percent of nursing home residents. Several

> studies have concluded that more than half are prescribed inappropriately.

> The drugs are especially hazardous to older people, raising the risk of

> strokes, pneumonia, confusion, falls, diabetes and hospitalization.

>

> " There's a bunch of problems, not least of which is those drugs can kill

> you, " said Dr. Mark Kunik at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston who spoke

> last month at the Gerontological Society of America's annual meeting in New

> Orleans.

>

> Instead of looking for causes of disruptive behavior among dementia

> patients, doctors typically prescribe drugs to mask the symptoms, he said,

> because " It's the easy thing to do. ... That's true in hospitals, in clinics

> and in nursing homes. "

>

> Federal regulators are cracking down on homes that don't routinely reassess

> residents on psychotropic drugs. But use remains widespread.

>

> " Whether you have Alzheimer's or not, there's a reason people get frustrated

> or upset -- pain, urinary tract infections, hunger, fear of strangers or

> loud noises or strange settings, maybe drug interactions,'' Kunik said. " If

> you figure that out, you likely can find a safer, nonpharmacologic

> treatment. "

>

> Treating loss with love

>

> About 150 miles south of Two Harbors, Bernice Brockelman, 91, was snacking

> on cookies last Wednesday beside the Christmas tree at Ecumen Parmly

> LifePointes, a nursing home in Center City -- all the while alternating

> quickly from calm to worry to calm.

>

> " Can I stay here tonight? I don't know where to go. Can I stay with you? "

> she asked Christy , the home's therapeutic recreation director.

> Though reassured her, she asked the question again -- and again and

> again.

>

> In an effort to calm her while preparing to wean her from pills, the Parmly

> staff invited Brockelman into a game of Bingo and to recite the Polish

> phrases she learned from her immigrant parents. Then she spotted a male

> visitor.

>

> " Hey, is he married?'' she asked with a sparkle in her eye.

>

> " When she's feeling good, Mom's an outrageous flirt and she can be really

> funny, " said her daughter, Judy Balthazor of Center City. " But often there

> is the repetitive questions, the worry, sometimes just being washed out. I

> can't wait for them to get her off her drugs. "

>

> Until the Awakenings project, few at the home knew Brockelman's whole story

> -- the loss of both parents when she was in high school, of her husband at

> age 46, then two sons, a close friend and a nephew. Found to have psychosis

> and dementia, she " just shut down because she had so many losses, " Balthazor

> said.

>

> Now, the Parmly staff is gaining deeper knowledge of 15 residents who are on

> psychotropic drugs and who frequently are agitated or upset. They are about

> to start weaning the residents from the drugs, but they've already started a

> range of activities tailored to each.

>

> Some say nursing homes cannot afford to replace drugs with personal

> attention because it requires too much staff time.

>

> " Our guess is that it will take the equivalent of two extra people at each

> home, spread across all job categories, " said Finn, Ecuman's vice president.

> " Can we afford it? We think we have to, because it's the right thing. "

>

> Brockelman, who lived nearly all of her life in northeast Minneapolis, loved

> to bake, so now she helps make bread and cookies. She danced and was

> physically active, so she walks with an aide and taps her toes to polka

> music. A devout Catholic, she attends several weekly church services. She

> plays Bingo with aide Jenna and sometimes other residents.

>

> " When [you] understand who Beatrice has been in the past, you know her a lot

> better in the present, " said. " With the Awakenings project, I have

> permission to spend the time I need with Bernice so she feels safe and

> loved. "

>

>

http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/health/111326224.html?page=1 & c=y<http://trk\

..cp20.com/Tracking/t.c?Gkgt-EPDw-Qy5fU8>

>

> --

> Regards,

>

>

[Guest guest]

Ruth writes:

<<I read this post with interest. My mother has been dx with mixed dementia and

is at the point of needing to move from an assisted living arrangement to a

dementia care residence. She takes 150 mg Effexor per day and has taken this AD

for at least 7 years. I know from my own experience how difficult it is to get

off of this med like it messed me up in terms of my own short term memory etc...

- i finally had to do a crossover to Prozac to gett off the stuff -my question

for her is, can we do a direct crossover to the Prozac from the 150 mg Effexor

and then taper the prozac as it has a longer half life? It would be very

difficult to do the type of tapering I had to do given her situation. She also

takes Namenda and galantamine, and I don't know how much help they are at this

point, either. Do you have any familiarity with tapering those meds?

Thank you,>>

responds:

** Ruth, never ever solicit information for your mother, who is elderly,

through a mailing list or email in general. If anyone were to give you advice,

that person would be highly irresponsible and would be a risk to your mother's

life and well-being.

People who are elderly usually have some health issues and can be on other

drugs. Even if not, they are more fragile than younger adults so are not worked

with in the same ways. I work with people of later years privately only because

of the amount of time and attention that goes into collecting all the

information and closely guiding the withdrawal (even if she wasn't older, the

fact that she's on at least 2 other drugs complicates the case enough to warrant

working privately). If you want to pursue it this way, please let me know.

Regards,

>

> *Moving Beyond Chemical Restraints in Nursing Homes

> **(reprinted from the Star Tribune)

>

> **Nursing homes are seeking to end the stupor*

> WARREN WOLFE, Star Tribune

>

> The aged woman had stopped biting aides and hitting other residents. That

> was the good news.

>

> But in the North Shore nursing home's efforts to achieve peace, she and many

> other residents were drugged into a stupor -- sleepy, lethargic, with little

> interest in food, activities and other people.

>

> " You see that in just about any nursing home,'' said Eva Lanigan, a nurse

> and resident care coordinator at Sunrise Home in Two Harbors, Minn. " But

> what kind of quality of life is that? "

>

> Working with a psychiatrist and a pharmacist, Lanigan started a project last

> year to find other ways to ease the yelling, moaning, crying, spitting,

> biting and other disruptive behavior that sometimes accompany dementia.

>

> They wanted to replace drugs with aromatherapy, massage, games, exercise,

> personal attention, better pain control and other techniques. The entire

> staff was trained and encouraged to interact with residents with dementia.

>

> Within six months, they eliminated antipsychotic drugs and cut the use of

> antidepressants by half. The result, Lanigan said: " The chaos level is down,

> but the noise is up -- the noise of people laughing, talking, much more

> engaged with life. It's amazing. "

>

> Now the home's operator, Shoreview-based Ecumen, has started a project

> called Awakenings throughout its 15 long-term care nursing homes. It's based

> on Lanigan's work and funded with a two-year, $3.7 million state grant.

>

> " We saw what Eva was doing -- something everybody in the industry talks

> about -- and we were impressed, " said Mick Finn, an Ecumen vice president.

> " We said, 'Hey, this is real. Can we all do this?' "

>

> The dangers of drugs

>

> Powerful antipsychotic drugs have been used for years to reduce agitation,

> hallucinations and other debilitating symptoms among people with mental

> illnesses.

>

> They also are widely used " off label " to quell disruptive behavior among

> people with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia.

>

> Medicare spends more than $5 billion a year on those drugs for its

> beneficiaries, including about 30 percent of nursing home residents. Several

> studies have concluded that more than half are prescribed inappropriately.

> The drugs are especially hazardous to older people, raising the risk of

> strokes, pneumonia, confusion, falls, diabetes and hospitalization.

>

> " There's a bunch of problems, not least of which is those drugs can kill

> you, " said Dr. Mark Kunik at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston who spoke

> last month at the Gerontological Society of America's annual meeting in New

> Orleans.

>

> Instead of looking for causes of disruptive behavior among dementia

> patients, doctors typically prescribe drugs to mask the symptoms, he said,

> because " It's the easy thing to do. ... That's true in hospitals, in clinics

> and in nursing homes. "

>

> Federal regulators are cracking down on homes that don't routinely reassess

> residents on psychotropic drugs. But use remains widespread.

>

> " Whether you have Alzheimer's or not, there's a reason people get frustrated

> or upset -- pain, urinary tract infections, hunger, fear of strangers or

> loud noises or strange settings, maybe drug interactions,'' Kunik said. " If

> you figure that out, you likely can find a safer, nonpharmacologic

> treatment. "

>

> Treating loss with love

>

> About 150 miles south of Two Harbors, Bernice Brockelman, 91, was snacking

> on cookies last Wednesday beside the Christmas tree at Ecumen Parmly

> LifePointes, a nursing home in Center City -- all the while alternating

> quickly from calm to worry to calm.

>

> " Can I stay here tonight? I don't know where to go. Can I stay with you? "

> she asked Christy , the home's therapeutic recreation director.

> Though reassured her, she asked the question again -- and again and

> again.

>

> In an effort to calm her while preparing to wean her from pills, the Parmly

> staff invited Brockelman into a game of Bingo and to recite the Polish

> phrases she learned from her immigrant parents. Then she spotted a male

> visitor.

>

> " Hey, is he married?'' she asked with a sparkle in her eye.

>

> " When she's feeling good, Mom's an outrageous flirt and she can be really

> funny, " said her daughter, Judy Balthazor of Center City. " But often there

> is the repetitive questions, the worry, sometimes just being washed out. I

> can't wait for them to get her off her drugs. "

>

> Until the Awakenings project, few at the home knew Brockelman's whole story

> -- the loss of both parents when she was in high school, of her husband at

> age 46, then two sons, a close friend and a nephew. Found to have psychosis

> and dementia, she " just shut down because she had so many losses, " Balthazor

> said.

>

> Now, the Parmly staff is gaining deeper knowledge of 15 residents who are on

> psychotropic drugs and who frequently are agitated or upset. They are about

> to start weaning the residents from the drugs, but they've already started a

> range of activities tailored to each.

>

> Some say nursing homes cannot afford to replace drugs with personal

> attention because it requires too much staff time.

>

> " Our guess is that it will take the equivalent of two extra people at each

> home, spread across all job categories, " said Finn, Ecuman's vice president.

> " Can we afford it? We think we have to, because it's the right thing. "

>

> Brockelman, who lived nearly all of her life in northeast Minneapolis, loved

> to bake, so now she helps make bread and cookies. She danced and was

> physically active, so she walks with an aide and taps her toes to polka

> music. A devout Catholic, she attends several weekly church services. She

> plays Bingo with aide Jenna and sometimes other residents.

>

> " When [you] understand who Beatrice has been in the past, you know her a lot

> better in the present, " said. " With the Awakenings project, I have

> permission to spend the time I need with Bernice so she feels safe and

> loved. "

>

>

http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/health/111326224.html?page=1 & c=y<http://trk\

..cp20.com/Tracking/t.c?Gkgt-EPDw-Qy5fU8>

>

> --

> Regards,

>

>

[Guest guest]

Ruth writes:

<<I read this post with interest. My mother has been dx with mixed dementia and

is at the point of needing to move from an assisted living arrangement to a

dementia care residence. She takes 150 mg Effexor per day and has taken this AD

for at least 7 years. I know from my own experience how difficult it is to get

off of this med like it messed me up in terms of my own short term memory etc...

- i finally had to do a crossover to Prozac to gett off the stuff -my question

for her is, can we do a direct crossover to the Prozac from the 150 mg Effexor

and then taper the prozac as it has a longer half life? It would be very

difficult to do the type of tapering I had to do given her situation. She also

takes Namenda and galantamine, and I don't know how much help they are at this

point, either. Do you have any familiarity with tapering those meds?

Thank you,>>

responds:

** Ruth, never ever solicit information for your mother, who is elderly,

through a mailing list or email in general. If anyone were to give you advice,

that person would be highly irresponsible and would be a risk to your mother's

life and well-being.

People who are elderly usually have some health issues and can be on other

drugs. Even if not, they are more fragile than younger adults so are not worked

with in the same ways. I work with people of later years privately only because

of the amount of time and attention that goes into collecting all the

information and closely guiding the withdrawal (even if she wasn't older, the

fact that she's on at least 2 other drugs complicates the case enough to warrant

working privately). If you want to pursue it this way, please let me know.

Regards,

>

> *Moving Beyond Chemical Restraints in Nursing Homes

> **(reprinted from the Star Tribune)

>

> **Nursing homes are seeking to end the stupor*

> WARREN WOLFE, Star Tribune

>

> The aged woman had stopped biting aides and hitting other residents. That

> was the good news.

>

> But in the North Shore nursing home's efforts to achieve peace, she and many

> other residents were drugged into a stupor -- sleepy, lethargic, with little

> interest in food, activities and other people.

>

> " You see that in just about any nursing home,'' said Eva Lanigan, a nurse

> and resident care coordinator at Sunrise Home in Two Harbors, Minn. " But

> what kind of quality of life is that? "

>

> Working with a psychiatrist and a pharmacist, Lanigan started a project last

> year to find other ways to ease the yelling, moaning, crying, spitting,

> biting and other disruptive behavior that sometimes accompany dementia.

>

> They wanted to replace drugs with aromatherapy, massage, games, exercise,

> personal attention, better pain control and other techniques. The entire

> staff was trained and encouraged to interact with residents with dementia.

>

> Within six months, they eliminated antipsychotic drugs and cut the use of

> antidepressants by half. The result, Lanigan said: " The chaos level is down,

> but the noise is up -- the noise of people laughing, talking, much more

> engaged with life. It's amazing. "

>

> Now the home's operator, Shoreview-based Ecumen, has started a project

> called Awakenings throughout its 15 long-term care nursing homes. It's based

> on Lanigan's work and funded with a two-year, $3.7 million state grant.

>

> " We saw what Eva was doing -- something everybody in the industry talks

> about -- and we were impressed, " said Mick Finn, an Ecumen vice president.

> " We said, 'Hey, this is real. Can we all do this?' "

>

> The dangers of drugs

>

> Powerful antipsychotic drugs have been used for years to reduce agitation,

> hallucinations and other debilitating symptoms among people with mental

> illnesses.

>

> They also are widely used " off label " to quell disruptive behavior among

> people with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia.

>

> Medicare spends more than $5 billion a year on those drugs for its

> beneficiaries, including about 30 percent of nursing home residents. Several

> studies have concluded that more than half are prescribed inappropriately.

> The drugs are especially hazardous to older people, raising the risk of

> strokes, pneumonia, confusion, falls, diabetes and hospitalization.

>

> " There's a bunch of problems, not least of which is those drugs can kill

> you, " said Dr. Mark Kunik at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston who spoke

> last month at the Gerontological Society of America's annual meeting in New

> Orleans.

>

> Instead of looking for causes of disruptive behavior among dementia

> patients, doctors typically prescribe drugs to mask the symptoms, he said,

> because " It's the easy thing to do. ... That's true in hospitals, in clinics

> and in nursing homes. "

>

> Federal regulators are cracking down on homes that don't routinely reassess

> residents on psychotropic drugs. But use remains widespread.

>

> " Whether you have Alzheimer's or not, there's a reason people get frustrated

> or upset -- pain, urinary tract infections, hunger, fear of strangers or

> loud noises or strange settings, maybe drug interactions,'' Kunik said. " If

> you figure that out, you likely can find a safer, nonpharmacologic

> treatment. "

>

> Treating loss with love

>

> About 150 miles south of Two Harbors, Bernice Brockelman, 91, was snacking

> on cookies last Wednesday beside the Christmas tree at Ecumen Parmly

> LifePointes, a nursing home in Center City -- all the while alternating

> quickly from calm to worry to calm.

>

> " Can I stay here tonight? I don't know where to go. Can I stay with you? "

> she asked Christy , the home's therapeutic recreation director.

> Though reassured her, she asked the question again -- and again and

> again.

>

> In an effort to calm her while preparing to wean her from pills, the Parmly

> staff invited Brockelman into a game of Bingo and to recite the Polish

> phrases she learned from her immigrant parents. Then she spotted a male

> visitor.

>

> " Hey, is he married?'' she asked with a sparkle in her eye.

>

> " When she's feeling good, Mom's an outrageous flirt and she can be really

> funny, " said her daughter, Judy Balthazor of Center City. " But often there

> is the repetitive questions, the worry, sometimes just being washed out. I

> can't wait for them to get her off her drugs. "

>

> Until the Awakenings project, few at the home knew Brockelman's whole story

> -- the loss of both parents when she was in high school, of her husband at

> age 46, then two sons, a close friend and a nephew. Found to have psychosis

> and dementia, she " just shut down because she had so many losses, " Balthazor

> said.

>

> Now, the Parmly staff is gaining deeper knowledge of 15 residents who are on

> psychotropic drugs and who frequently are agitated or upset. They are about

> to start weaning the residents from the drugs, but they've already started a

> range of activities tailored to each.

>

> Some say nursing homes cannot afford to replace drugs with personal

> attention because it requires too much staff time.

>

> " Our guess is that it will take the equivalent of two extra people at each

> home, spread across all job categories, " said Finn, Ecuman's vice president.

> " Can we afford it? We think we have to, because it's the right thing. "

>

> Brockelman, who lived nearly all of her life in northeast Minneapolis, loved

> to bake, so now she helps make bread and cookies. She danced and was

> physically active, so she walks with an aide and taps her toes to polka

> music. A devout Catholic, she attends several weekly church services. She

> plays Bingo with aide Jenna and sometimes other residents.

>

> " When [you] understand who Beatrice has been in the past, you know her a lot

> better in the present, " said. " With the Awakenings project, I have

> permission to spend the time I need with Bernice so she feels safe and

> loved. "

>

>

http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/health/111326224.html?page=1 & c=y<http://trk\

..cp20.com/Tracking/t.c?Gkgt-EPDw-Qy5fU8>

>

> --

> Regards,

>

>

[Guest guest]

writes:

<<Oh, , thank you for your response. I certainly understand. It never

occurred to me and of course you are right. I think that it would be good to

consult privately and thank you for your offer. Do I start the process by

completing the consulation form?

Ruth Ann>>

** Yes Ruth. That would be where to begin. I'm glad you see the sense in

this.

--

> >

> > *Moving Beyond Chemical Restraints in Nursing Homes

> > **(reprinted from the Star Tribune)

> >

> > **Nursing homes are seeking to end the stupor*

> > WARREN WOLFE, Star Tribune

> >

> > The aged woman had stopped biting aides and hitting other residents. That

> > was the good news.

> >

> > But in the North Shore nursing home's efforts to achieve peace, she and many

> > other residents were drugged into a stupor -- sleepy, lethargic, with little

> > interest in food, activities and other people.

> >

> > " You see that in just about any nursing home,'' said Eva Lanigan, a nurse

> > and resident care coordinator at Sunrise Home in Two Harbors, Minn. " But

> > what kind of quality of life is that? "

> >

> > Working with a psychiatrist and a pharmacist, Lanigan started a project last

> > year to find other ways to ease the yelling, moaning, crying, spitting,

> > biting and other disruptive behavior that sometimes accompany dementia.

> >

> > They wanted to replace drugs with aromatherapy, massage, games, exercise,

> > personal attention, better pain control and other techniques. The entire

> > staff was trained and encouraged to interact with residents with dementia.

> >

> > Within six months, they eliminated antipsychotic drugs and cut the use of

> > antidepressants by half. The result, Lanigan said: " The chaos level is down,

> > but the noise is up -- the noise of people laughing, talking, much more

> > engaged with life. It's amazing. "

> >

> > Now the home's operator, Shoreview-based Ecumen, has started a project

> > called Awakenings throughout its 15 long-term care nursing homes. It's based

> > on Lanigan's work and funded with a two-year, $3.7 million state grant.

> >

> > " We saw what Eva was doing -- something everybody in the industry talks

> > about -- and we were impressed, " said Mick Finn, an Ecumen vice president.

> > " We said, 'Hey, this is real. Can we all do this?' "

> >

> > The dangers of drugs

> >

> > Powerful antipsychotic drugs have been used for years to reduce agitation,

> > hallucinations and other debilitating symptoms among people with mental

> > illnesses.

> >

> > They also are widely used " off label " to quell disruptive behavior among

> > people with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia.

> >

> > Medicare spends more than $5 billion a year on those drugs for its

> > beneficiaries, including about 30 percent of nursing home residents. Several

> > studies have concluded that more than half are prescribed inappropriately.

> > The drugs are especially hazardous to older people, raising the risk of

> > strokes, pneumonia, confusion, falls, diabetes and hospitalization.

> >

> > " There's a bunch of problems, not least of which is those drugs can kill

> > you, " said Dr. Mark Kunik at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston who spoke

> > last month at the Gerontological Society of America's annual meeting in New

> > Orleans.

> >

> > Instead of looking for causes of disruptive behavior among dementia

> > patients, doctors typically prescribe drugs to mask the symptoms, he said,

> > because " It's the easy thing to do. ... That's true in hospitals, in clinics

> > and in nursing homes. "

> >

> > Federal regulators are cracking down on homes that don't routinely reassess

> > residents on psychotropic drugs. But use remains widespread.

> >

> > " Whether you have Alzheimer's or not, there's a reason people get frustrated

> > or upset -- pain, urinary tract infections, hunger, fear of strangers or

> > loud noises or strange settings, maybe drug interactions,'' Kunik said. " If

> > you figure that out, you likely can find a safer, nonpharmacologic

> > treatment. "

> >

> > Treating loss with love

> >

> > About 150 miles south of Two Harbors, Bernice Brockelman, 91, was snacking

> > on cookies last Wednesday beside the Christmas tree at Ecumen Parmly

> > LifePointes, a nursing home in Center City -- all the while alternating

> > quickly from calm to worry to calm.

> >

> > " Can I stay here tonight? I don't know where to go. Can I stay with you? "

> > she asked Christy , the home's therapeutic recreation director.

> > Though reassured her, she asked the question again -- and again and

> > again.

> >

> > In an effort to calm her while preparing to wean her from pills, the Parmly

> > staff invited Brockelman into a game of Bingo and to recite the Polish

> > phrases she learned from her immigrant parents. Then she spotted a male

> > visitor.

> >

> > " Hey, is he married?'' she asked with a sparkle in her eye.

> >

> > " When she's feeling good, Mom's an outrageous flirt and she can be really

> > funny, " said her daughter, Judy Balthazor of Center City. " But often there

> > is the repetitive questions, the worry, sometimes just being washed out. I

> > can't wait for them to get her off her drugs. "

> >

> > Until the Awakenings project, few at the home knew Brockelman's whole story

> > -- the loss of both parents when she was in high school, of her husband at

> > age 46, then two sons, a close friend and a nephew. Found to have psychosis

> > and dementia, she " just shut down because she had so many losses, " Balthazor

> > said.

> >

> > Now, the Parmly staff is gaining deeper knowledge of 15 residents who are on

> > psychotropic drugs and who frequently are agitated or upset. They are about

> > to start weaning the residents from the drugs, but they've already started a

> > range of activities tailored to each.

> >

> > Some say nursing homes cannot afford to replace drugs with personal

> > attention because it requires too much staff time.

> >

> > " Our guess is that it will take the equivalent of two extra people at each

> > home, spread across all job categories, " said Finn, Ecuman's vice president.

> > " Can we afford it? We think we have to, because it's the right thing. "

> >

> > Brockelman, who lived nearly all of her life in northeast Minneapolis, loved

> > to bake, so now she helps make bread and cookies. She danced and was

> > physically active, so she walks with an aide and taps her toes to polka

> > music. A devout Catholic, she attends several weekly church services. She

> > plays Bingo with aide Jenna and sometimes other residents.

> >

> > " When [you] understand who Beatrice has been in the past, you know her a lot

> > better in the present, " said. " With the Awakenings project, I have

> > permission to spend the time I need with Bernice so she feels safe and

> > loved. "

> >

> >

http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/health/111326224.html?page=1 & c=y<http://trk\

..cp20.com/Tracking/t.c?Gkgt-EPDw-Qy5fU8>

> >

> > --

> > Regards,

> >

> >

>