Today there was a flurry of work on the book!
I was finally able to submit the manuscript to the publisher after two years of revisions and much editing. I also completed work on the press release and made some key choices about inner layout. Building a book is a long and involved process, but will be worth the effort if it helps even one person who must make the journey that John and I are making.
One element of writing and publishing this book which has been very enjoyable has been contacting other authors who have written about caregiving. They are a special group of people and I very much appreciate each one. One of my new author friends said, "Writing a book is one thing. Finishing a book is quite another!" She is so right.
Hopefully, I will soon figure out how to add other authors' links to this blog so any reader will be able to get to know their great work in spreading the word about LBD and/or good caregiving information. Writing the book and setting up this blog has been a learning process for me and has been part of what I have done to keep myself intellectually stimulated while caregiving. It has been healthy and good on many levels.
Next comes work on the cover pictures and consultations to nail down every detail of inner layout work.
I am very eager to get this book out, so I hope the rest of the process will go quickly.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
New Book for Early Stage Caregivers is Almost Ready
My new book, Treasures in the Darkness---Extending the Early Stage of Lewy Body Dementia, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's Disease, is in the final stages of being published and should be available in the next few weeks. The purpose of the book is to offer hope and practical suggestions to caregivers and family members of anyone who has been recently diagnosed with one of the diseases mentioned in my title. It is especially designed for those in the early stages.
When my husband, John, was diagnosed in June 2007, there was no book available for me to help me feel less alone and to give me ideas of what I might do to help him remain as healthy as possible for as long as possible. As far as I know there is still no other book on the market that addresses how to enhance and extend the earliest and best stage of Lewy Body Dementia (LBD). Since none was written, I decided to write it after my husband's neurologist suggested that I do so.
There are many websites and books available for caregivers of folks with Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, but they deal with the whole process of the disease and tend to focus on the later stages when more intense caregiving is needed. There is an excellent website available for LBD patients and caregivers at http://www.lbda.org/. As an early stage LBD caregiver, I found these to be helpful in research, but frightening and overwhelming when I read of the struggles of other caregivers in the throws of later stage LBD. There was nothing out there for me as an early stage LBD caregiver for the encouragement that I needed to make it through the first weeks and months of adjusting to John's diagnosis.
Hopefully, my book will offer that encouragement and support to others who must walk this path and make this journey that none of us wants to make.
My first word of encouragement to anyone just starting the journey is that you will not remain emotionally where you are today. You will get through this. You will find your balance again. You are not alone.
When my husband, John, was diagnosed in June 2007, there was no book available for me to help me feel less alone and to give me ideas of what I might do to help him remain as healthy as possible for as long as possible. As far as I know there is still no other book on the market that addresses how to enhance and extend the earliest and best stage of Lewy Body Dementia (LBD). Since none was written, I decided to write it after my husband's neurologist suggested that I do so.
There are many websites and books available for caregivers of folks with Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, but they deal with the whole process of the disease and tend to focus on the later stages when more intense caregiving is needed. There is an excellent website available for LBD patients and caregivers at http://www.lbda.org/. As an early stage LBD caregiver, I found these to be helpful in research, but frightening and overwhelming when I read of the struggles of other caregivers in the throws of later stage LBD. There was nothing out there for me as an early stage LBD caregiver for the encouragement that I needed to make it through the first weeks and months of adjusting to John's diagnosis.
Hopefully, my book will offer that encouragement and support to others who must walk this path and make this journey that none of us wants to make.
My first word of encouragement to anyone just starting the journey is that you will not remain emotionally where you are today. You will get through this. You will find your balance again. You are not alone.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)