Three Degree Guarantee: Alzheimer’s Association
ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - Each month, Atlanta News First donates money to charity as part of our Three Degree Guarantee. $50 goes to charity each day our meteorologists’ predicted temperature is within 3 degrees and that is matched by Cool Ray. For November, we’re supporting the Alzheimer’s Association.
For many, an Alzheimer’s diagnosis can be isolating and can make families feel completely alone. With one call, all of that can change.
Mark Sennet was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s at the beginning of the year. Mark’s wife Pam, said the family felt completely unprepared. One of their daughters gave them the number for the Alzheimer’s Association’s hotline.
“Little did I know that three months later, I would be calling the helpline in the middle of the night,” said Pam. “They knew how to help me reorient him, to keep him calm, to keep me calm and we got him through this episode. Then, they helped me put an action plan together so that if this ever happens again, I know what to do.”
The call gave the family a resource that in crisis, became a lifeline. The hotline is completely free and funded by donations.
“Most people, by the time they find us, say they wished they knew about us sooner. Wished they would’ve known what to do and who to call sooner. We find a lot of times they get to us when they are in crisis, instead of early on in the disease,” said Kim Franklin with Alzheimer’s Association.
The Alzheimer’s Association can help families develop an action plan in the early stages of the diagnosis, they can also help create emergency plans and everything in between. Not to mention helping families find community, like what so many find in the Walk to End Alzheimer’s.
“I think it so important to know that there is help there. This is a devastating disease. It is an unpredictable disease. I think knowing the Alzheimer’s Association is there made all the difference in the world,” said Pam.
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