Sammie Marsalli

Hi I am

Sammie Marsalli

About Me

As an author, I am certainly not an expert or an authority on Alzheimer's. I am definitely not a professional author and didn't pretend to write an authoritative masterpiece. I never pretended to be any one of those things. I am simply an ordinary “John Doe” 24/7 Alzheimer’s caregiver, husband, sharing my experiences, reactions, and inventing therapies while caring for my wife at home with Alzheimer's. We have been married 44 years, 3 kids now grown up, a great dog most of those years, a typical family on our own, trying to hold on to my wife and avoid her shutdown.

Hospice home care for a loved one with Alzheimer's begins on the very first day it is diagnosed. This home care without any outside help is extremely difficult, but usually, there is no other option. Outside professional help is always welcome, but cannot respond “in real time” when radical behavioral changes occur. Only home caregivers can do it at that very moment. No one has the exact key as to how to respond to these changes, as there are no two profile behavioral changes alike in the same stage of the disease.

There isn't a set therapy, as each stage of Alzheimer's varies in its characteristics. Only your experiences can be your guide. “What works for me may not work for you.”

As a result, I began to invent my own home therapies. Family home caregivers find themselves alone, inventing their own home care to mitigate behavioral changes and needs.

I realize there are other Alzheimer’s home caregivers like me, “amateur”, trying to take care of a loved one with Alzheimer's. Like everyone, I was learning the hard way by trial and error to mitigate tremendous changes in behavior with my wife when they were happening.

Hopefully, my books become a shortcut for Alzheimer’s caregivers, to avoid some of the desperation, frustration, and sadness on their tortuous caregiving journey.

Profile

Profile View 6749
Total Quotes 3
Books 3
Member Since Jul 2022
Profession Teacher
Country United States
Born 12 August
Genre Advice & How To, Biographies & Memoirs, General Nonfiction

Sammie Marsalli Books

Holding On To Her Identity: Losing My Wife To Alzheimer's Holding On To Her Identity: Losing My Wife To Alzheimer's Amazon View Detail
Preventing Her Shutdown: Losing My Wife To Alzheimer's Preventing Her Shutdown: Losing My Wife To Alzheimer's Amazon View Detail
62 Tips For Caregivers Of Alzheimer's To Delay Shutdown 62 Tips For Caregivers Of Alzheimer's To Delay Shutdown Amazon View Detail

Quotes

My obsession was that she never forgot who she was, me, her children, and each family member. — Sammie Marsalli —
I was terrified she could forget who she is and lose all sense of self-identity. I made sure that didn't happen. — Sammie Marsalli —
My desperation came when I got that “blank stare,” that “I don't know you look.”  I kept interacting with her until she connected to me.  Even though she was unable to speak, she always did. — Sammie Marsalli —

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