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Alzheimer's: Caring for mom, raising son |
Dennis Daye can’t shake the memory of Dec. 2, 2002.After years of caring for his wife, Shirley, at home, he finally acknowledged she needed full-time care for Alzheimer’s disease. The family gathered for Shirley’s birthday party on Dec. 1. The next day, they took her to the special care unit of the Presbyterian Home in West Columbia.“That was the hardest day of my life,” Dennis said. “It was harder than jumping off the ship in Korea with a gun on my back and heading to war.“You know you’ve done the right thing, but you still feel the guilt.”Dealing with those sorts of emotions can be excruciating. To better equip caregivers to handle what often seems an unbearable load, the S.C. chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association will stage its first Alzheimer’s Community Resource Conference on Thursday.
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