A Deeper Perspective on Alzheimer’s and Other Dementias: Practical Tools and Spiritual Insights is a captivating look at Alzheimer’s disease and caregiving through the eyes of a master storyteller and sage. After years of work as a nurse and executive director in dementia care, Megan Carnarius has learned how to tap into a person’s spirit and be with them as they travel this journey. In the book, she weaves together lessons she has learned from people with dementia and her own personal experiences of what is meant to be a compassionate caregiver. This book is validating for families, eye- opening for healthcare professionals, and life changing for millions of people living with dementia.

I have been waiting for a book like this for years! A Deeper Perspective on Alzheimer’s and Other Dementias: Practical Tools and Spiritual Insights is a pleasure to read, as it offers real life anecdotes on how to cope with, respond to, and embrace a loved one affected by Alzheimer’s. I have had clients asking me for resources and ideas about how to handle several different areas of life for someone with Alzheimer’s, and I finally have a place to send them! Megan’s approach is compassionate, honest, intelligent, and humorous. This book has the facts and information to understand the disease and the narrative that makes the reader want to keep reading. Megan is THE expert on Alzheimer’s and dementia care, because she sees the person behind the disease and really responds to them and who they are today.

At last, a fascinating book about Alzheimer’s! Megan’s account of her career in long- term care in Alzheimer’s and Other Dementias: Practical Tools and Spiritual Insights makes a good read, and it should be enjoyed by anyone who is concerned with dementia. Her case history approach, relating her effective relationship to individuals and their needs adopts humor as well as compassionate understanding. The book offers insightful learning about a complicated subject. The author is a recognized leader in the promotion of tender loving care for individuals with Alzheimer’s and other dementia and is a nationwide consultant on design of the therapeutic environment.

If you or someone you know is dealing with any of the 48 kinds of dementia, please read this book. Even if Alzheimer’s or other dementia isn’t currently in your sphere, it is a good idea to read this book since it gives one of the best explanations of all facets of dementia that I have ever read.

Besides giving the clinical and historical aspects, the book is full of stories that demonstrate behaviors, challenges, and some solutions for people who have to deal with the consequences of dementias. Because our society is rapidly aging, the average citizen is going to encounter these situations more than in the past. Reading this book can prepare you so you will be better equipped to understand and respond to people who are suffering from these diseases.

Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias are on the rise, yet few family members or caregivers understand the progression of the disease or how to respond to what’s going on when their loved ones have memory loss and gradually lose their independence. A nurse specializing in Alzheimer’s and with 25 years” experience in running memory care facilities, Megan Carnarius has written an insightful book for family and professional caregivers. She details the stages of dementia, in which elders lose their adult learning and then their adolescent, childhood and infant learning and enter the terminal phase. Many sufferers at various stages are already attending to deep aspects of the self on the spiritual level. Instead of seeing the process as one of hopeless degradation, we need to see that it provides blessings and to allow our loved ones to shape their soul’s journey in their own way. Carnarius has a practical wisdom that helps us come to terms with the disease, with changing roles, with the almost insurmountable challenges, and with letting go. Caregivers need to keep a sense of humour, accept the circumstances and attend to their own health and wellbeing. Shining a bright light on the final path, Carnarius expresses the love, compassion, honour and humanity that we can all take on board. An important book for our times.

Megan Carnarius offers wise, nuanced insight into the world of individuals dealing with dementia. A Deeper Perspective on Alzheimer’s and Other Dementias: Practical Tools and Spiritual Insights is an essential guide for caregivers who are along for the journey, offering creative, outside-the-box, yet practical ideas for dealing with challenging situations. Megan challenges us to reevaluate our attitudes and feelings about dementia, with clear benefit to the individuals living with it.

A Deeper Perspective on Alzheimer’s and Other Dementias is unlike most other books on the subject in that it doesn’t relate the predictable progression of Alzheimer’s or the strain on caregivers, but focuses instead on how to create an improved quality of life for everyone affected, at each stage of the disease. It’s highly recommended for caregivers and families dealing with dementia and shows how to cultivate a sense of love, life, and support in the process of caregiving, right up to the final stages of the disease.

Megan Carnarius has a professional background in caring (as a registered nurse, licensed nursing home administrator, and massage therapist with some 25 years’ experience running memory care facilities) and links the different stages of dementia to different aspects of its care, offering tools that embrace the spiritual implications and challenges of illness as much as the physical and psychological stresses involved.

The result is far more wide-ranging than most, and a top recommendation (above most others) for the position of ‘most practical, useful’ guide, packed with tools caregivers need to know about.