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My Life Rearranged: Musings of an Alzheimer Caregiver
"A stirring book that offers an ideal blend of direction and comfort to fellow caregivers." —Kirkus
Pssst ...is your life being rearranged?You are not alone. Alzheimer’s and dementia will turn your life inside out and upside down. In fact, there are many days you won’t know if you are coming or going. Susan Miller knows those days. Her husband was diagnosed with Early-Onset Alzheimer’s. She became the long distance caregiver for her father’s medical issues, followed by her mother’s diagnosis of dementia and then a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s for her mother-in-law. After decades of caregiving and years of widowhood, Susan met a wonderful widower, only to discover signs of dementia. My Life Rearranged gives voice to what many caregivers think, but are reluctant to admit. You will
The issues of love, loss, responsibility, duty, and self-preservation while navigating the stages of the disease.What it’s like to struggle with a disease that strikes terror in people’s hearts and offers ways to come through intact.How to lessen the isolation and loneliness of caregiving, and bring honest insight into the life of a caregiver.Imagine coming home from the store and laying your package down, only to find it gone thirty minutes later, nowhere to be found.
Imagine looking for your favorite cereal in the morning, not finding it anywhere, and only later when you go to do a load of wash, do you find it.
Imagine living with your spouse of many years, only to awaken one day and find he has turned into a child.
Imagine thinking you are living in a house of cards, or that you are imagining it all, or perhaps it’s just a dream and you’ll soon awaken, but it’s not and you don’t.
Imagine repeating this scenario over and over again.
My Life Rearranged will tug at your heart, touch your soul, inspire you, and help you believe in your capabilities.
Pssst ...is your life being rearranged?You are not alone. Alzheimer’s and dementia will turn your life inside out and upside down. In fact, there are many days you won’t know if you are coming or going. Susan Miller knows those days. Her husband was diagnosed with Early-Onset Alzheimer’s. She became the long distance caregiver for her father’s medical issues, followed by her mother’s diagnosis of dementia and then a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s for her mother-in-law. After decades of caregiving and years of widowhood, Susan met a wonderful widower, only to discover signs of dementia. My Life Rearranged gives voice to what many caregivers think, but are reluctant to admit. You will
The issues of love, loss, responsibility, duty, and self-preservation while navigating the stages of the disease.What it’s like to struggle with a disease that strikes terror in people’s hearts and offers ways to come through intact.How to lessen the isolation and loneliness of caregiving, and bring honest insight into the life of a caregiver.Imagine coming home from the store and laying your package down, only to find it gone thirty minutes later, nowhere to be found.
Imagine looking for your favorite cereal in the morning, not finding it anywhere, and only later when you go to do a load of wash, do you find it.
Imagine living with your spouse of many years, only to awaken one day and find he has turned into a child.
Imagine thinking you are living in a house of cards, or that you are imagining it all, or perhaps it’s just a dream and you’ll soon awaken, but it’s not and you don’t.
Imagine repeating this scenario over and over again.
My Life Rearranged will tug at your heart, touch your soul, inspire you, and help you believe in your capabilities.
296 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 16, 2018
12 people are currently reading
17 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
June 28, 2018
The book was beautifully written by a caregiver for her husband diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. She told of the years of fear, frustration, exhaustion and search for answers. It is an easy book to pick up at any point. Anyone who is a caregiver or knows a caregiver can gain valuable insight on how to be present and get/give support.
August 23, 2020
This book is lifting boulders off my shoulders. Helping with guilt, anger, sadness and much more. I keep going over it memorizing words that describe my situation day by day. It is preparing me for what is coming very shortly. We are being assisted by Hospice even though our situation is not necessarily a short time death evaluation. This book has become a companion to my scriptures. Thank you Susan, I don't need my therapist as much now. 🙋
October 23, 2022
I really liked this book as I could relate to the emotions expressed in the prose poetry. There are many books that give practical advise about navigating a life shared with someone who has dementia, but very few books that provide an emotional mirror of the journey taken. I read and reread these poems just to remind myself that I am not going crazy.
September 3, 2020
Emotional
I liked the style of this book. It tugs at your heart .
It really demonstrated what happens as selfless caregiver gives up their life to care for one for whom no hope of recovery exists.
I liked the style of this book. It tugs at your heart .
It really demonstrated what happens as selfless caregiver gives up their life to care for one for whom no hope of recovery exists.
October 19, 2023
I loved this book and found it very insightful! A bit of the information was repeated throughout the chapters, yet it was so real and raw that I overlooked that minor flaw. I read a paperback version from the local library.
February 23, 2024
so needed
I loved this book. I’m two years into a caregiver’s journey with my father. This book helped me feel seen and understood and helped me make some sense of this process.
I loved this book. I’m two years into a caregiver’s journey with my father. This book helped me feel seen and understood and helped me make some sense of this process.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews