CAREGIVING STORIES

“When your loved one gets an Alzheimer’s diagnosis, research can give you hope and help you wrap your brain around what will happen. But absolutely nothing can prepare your heart for the day your mom doesn’t recognize you.” ~ Lizz Lewis

Five generations of Lizz’s relatives know first-hand how Alzheimer’s impacts the entire family. When Lizz’s mother Margaret started forgetting names, getting lost in familiar places, and losing personal items, Lizz took notice. A neurologist confirmed her worst fears. Like her grandmother and great grandfather, “Alzheimer’s was back to claim another amazing woman’s dignity.” At only 65 years old, Margaret had begun the rapid decline that Lizz knew all too well.

Tara Hicks’ world was turned upside down in 2014 when her mother, Tanya, was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s at the age of 54. Suddenly Tara found herself among the estimated 11.2 million Americans caring for someone with Alzheimer’s or other dementias, a job made more complex because as a millennial, Tara has to balance her career with her caregiving responsibilities. WAM salutes Tara and all of those like her who care for loved ones with Alzheimer’s day in and day out.

When Barbara Milton Jr.’s mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, she stepped into a role she never thought she would take on. Listen and watch as she takes you on her challenging but healing caregiving journey with her mother.