Chicken Soup for the Soul: Navigating Eldercare & Dementia: 101 Stories for Family Caregivers

by Amy Newmark

Navigating eldercare can be overwhelming, especially when dealing with dementia. You’ll find what you need in these pages, with great advice from families who have been there, done that!

T hese revealing stories from family caregivers—spouses, grown children and grandchildren—share the emotional support and practical tips that you need as you navigate the world of eldercare, especially when Alzheimer’s or other dementias are part of it. You’ll feel less alone and more empowered in your new role as you help your loved ones.

Find the help you need in these stories
• Joining your family member in his or her new reality
• Understanding and accepting Alzheimer’s and dementia
• Tough choices—moving, driving, hiring help, finances
• Independent living, assisted living, memory care, or staying home
• Love, loss, romance and friendships
• Self-care and perspective for the caregiver
• Making your “village” and asking for help
• Learning how to be patient and compassionate
• Finding the humor and the blessings along the way
• Strategies and tips that work for family caregivers

Chicken Soup for the Soul books are 100% made in the USA and each book includes stories from as diverse a group of writers as possible. Chicken Soup for the Soul solicits and publishes stories from the LGBTQ community and from people of all ethnicities, nationalities, and religions.

Genres: Family

368 pages, Paperback

Published June 22, 2021

About the author

Amy Newmark is the bestselling author, editor-in-chief, and publisher of the Chicken Soup for the Soul book series. Since 2008, she has published 191 new Chicken Soup for the Soul titles, most of them national bestsellers in the U.S. and Canada, more than doubling the number of Chicken Soup for the Soul titles in print today.

Amy is credited with revitalizing the Chicken Soup for the Soul brand, which has been a publishing industry phenomenon since the first book came out in 1993. By compiling inspirational and aspirational true stories curated from ordinary people who have had extraordinary experiences, Amy has kept the thirty-year-old Chicken Soup for the Soul brand fresh and relevant.

Follow Amy on Twitter @amynewmark. Listen to her free podcast, The Chicken Soup for the Soul Podcast, on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, the Podcasts app on iPhone, or by using your favorite podcast app on other devices.

Reviews

[Shirley Chapel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a collection of true stories of caregivers and others who have contact with family members and friends who suffer from Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Some of the stories are about caregivers dealing with family members who have terminal cancer or other such health issues. We read about how caregivers dealt with family members in nursing homes during the Covid 19 shut in. Story #101, the last story in this collection of true stories covers this situation and was written by Ohio Author Laurie Stroup Smith.

What I think I learned most from this book was that instead of trying to correct a loved family member with dementia or Alzheimer’s step into their world. For example the elderly woman waiting by the door of the assisted living center wearing a rain coat and asking for her daughter to fetch her an umbrella. True it was raining
hard as her daughter tries to reason with her. Why not wait till it quits raining to go for a walk? Finally someone asks the right question. “Why do you want to go out on such a rainy day?” Her answer “ To meet the kids at the school bus. I don’t want them to get wet” To solve the problem her social worker tells the elderly lady that arrangements had been made for someone in a car to meet the children and deliver them home safe and dry. The elderly lady excepts the explanation and goes back to her apartment and forgets about what had been upsetting her.

I recommend this book to all people who would benefit from reading it. It’s packed with stories about how families have successfully cared for older family members with Alzheimer’s or Dementia. 101 stories written by different Authors plus two bonus stories at the books ending.

I purchased a signed copy from Author Laurie Stroup Smith. All thoughts and opinions expressed here in this review are my own.

[Karol Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read , Belvedere story, haven't had time to read the other stories. Very touching story by Margaret Toman.

[April Schwanke Kaufman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent stories for those of us dealing with aging parents and family members.

[Bonnie S McDonald · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book very therapeutic for my current experience with my mother. It helped me to make some decisions that are needed and gave me insight to future possibilities. Very encouraging and easy reading for a caregiver. Would make a thoughtful gift.

[Tammy Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Compilation of individuals short stories pertaining to their loved ones with dementia. Very heartwarming and a little sad.