apple blossoms | the DAWN Method

The Cost of Dementia Care is Bankrupting Us

According to the Genworth Cost of Care Survey, 70 percent of Americans over the age of 65 will require some form of long-term care services during their lives. Twenty percent of them will need institutional care for more than five years. The cost of dementia care and long-term care In 2021, the average cost for assisted … Read more

Wheat fields being harvested with combines in the distance | the DAWN Method

Dementia – The Epidemic That Is Bankrupting Us.

It is an epidemic. It’s estimated that 5.4 million Americans had Alzheimer’s in 2016. The Alzheimer’s Association reports that every 66 seconds someone in the United States develops dementia and that by midcentury someone will develop dementia every 33 seconds. This is an epidemic far from peaking. Dementia is also one of the most expensive … Read more

Red flowers with tree, white picket fence, and wheat fields in background | the DAWN Method

Dementia Villages – or Dementia-Friendly Communities?

Dementia villages are springing up in Europe, Britain, and Canada. These are Truman Show-style communities, where the residents are people who have dementia and everyone who works there—the shopkeepers and waitresses, policemen and postmen—are actually caregivers. The idea is to provide people with familiar surroundings and the usual activities of daily life so that they … Read more

green wheat stalks close-up with blue sky | the DAWN Method

Dementia and Finding Those Missing Keys (Purse, Glasses …)

People who have dementia are constantly losing things. This is a tremendous source of stress for not only themselves but their caregivers, housekeepers, friends, and family members. When you don’t have the ability to recall what happened a few minutes ago, let alone this morning, it can seem more likely that someone took your wallet … Read more

pineapple | the DAWN Method

Dementia and the Grocery Store

Running errands with someone who has dementia can be very trying. Here are two tips that will make it easier. It really doesn’t matter where it is you need to go—the grocery store, the bank, the hardware store, the insurance company—you can avoid frustration and have a more companionable time if you help your loved … Read more