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Support Groups: Proven to Help
T he need for support groups is eloquently described by
Sherwin Nuland, MD in his
book HOW WE DIE.
“In the case of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), it is rarely the patient who recognizes the
need for company through the travail. But there is probably no disability of our time in which
the presence of support groups can help so decisively to ensure the emotional survival of the
closest witnesses to the disintegration.”
Lynn, one such witness, joined a support group a year after her 79-year-old mother was
officially diagnosed with AD. An only child, she was her mother’s primary caregiver. Her father
had died 2 years before her mother’s decline into the incoherence of dementia.
“I was emotionally shut down and depressed,” Lynn said. “In the group, I cried about missing
my mother and laughed about the crazy things she was doing. Everyone understood my feelings
and I felt more hopeful I’d be able to take care of my mother and hold onto my own life.”
Dr. Mary Mittelman, Research Professor at NYU Langone Medical Center, and recipient of
the first Global Award for Alzheimer’s Psychosocial Research in March 2009, has been studying
the effects of AD on caregivers for the last 20 years. In her longitudinal study, begun in 1987,
she established that support in the forms of individual counseling and support groups helps to
preserve the health and well being of caregivers. Her study included 406 spousal caregivers.
Three years after his wife of 45 years was diagnosed with AD, Bob joined a group. He was
agitated and depressed. “My definition of myself was based on my ability to solve problems and
get things done. There was nothing in our lives I hadn’t been able to fix,” he said, “and I couldn’t
grasp I wasn’t going to fix this. I was devastated I was losing my best friend.” The group helped
Bob through his depression and resignation. “I’m able to go on now and I can even imagine
starting a new life,” he says.
There are groups for adult children, spouses, partners and significant others. All the groups
can be seen here or a support group list will be mailed to you if you call the 24-
hour Helpline at 646-744-2900. If you would like to discuss the right group for yourself or other
questions, please call me
at 646-744-2917.
Support Group Leader Training Seminars
Fall Training
October 16, 2009
October 23, 2009
October 30, 2009
November 6, 2009
Winter Training
January 22, 2010
January 29, 2010
February 5, 2010
February 12, 2010
Registration requires a commitment to attend all 4 days of training. To register, for information
about future workshops, or ongoing supervision groups for support group leaders, please call
Sharon B. Shaw, LCSW, CGP, at 646-744-2932.
This program has been approved by NASW-New York State for 22.0 contact hours under approval number A-915.
For more information, please contact Sharon Shaw at 646-744-2932 or sshaw@alznyc.org or
Wendy Panken
at 646-744-2917 or wpanken@alznyc.org.
— Wendy Panken, LCSW
Manager, Support Groups
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