Chicago's Geriatric Care Manager Center of Excellence – Since 1991 • senior care servicesChicago's Geriatric Care Manager Center of Excellence

Can’t Find Your Keys?
When I speak to some clients our conversation moves from their work lives and forward to their retirements now....
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April 16, 2024
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Follow Your Gut…You’ve Got No Choice
It was back in the sixties and seventies that so many folks embraced the mantra: “You are what you...
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April 11, 2023
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Long COVID’s Long List of Symptoms
The COVID pandemic is not yet done with us in the United States, and the story certainly is different...
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February 7, 2023
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To Sleep, Perchance to Dream
No, this isn’t a refresher course on Shakespeare and the famous Hamlet soliloquy. (Spoiler Alert – Hamlet was ranting...
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January 2, 2023
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Saying “No” May be the Right Answer
Saying “yes” when someone asks you to do something can be like eating candy. It feels right or good...
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November 15, 2022
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Become a Dementia Detective by “Talking the Talk”
Today we have a guest Post from Christina Padilla, a speech-language pathologist and Certified Dementia Practitioner living and working...
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September 27, 2022
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Diagnosing Alzheimer’s Disease
September is Alzheimer’s Awareness Month, and this is the second of four posts we’ll offer on the subject. A...
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September 13, 2022
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Food Fight
When you hear the word cancer a lot can come to mind such as “cancer survivor,” “living with cancer,”...
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August 23, 2022
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Before or After the Fall
I came across an informative piece in the Washington Post about a week ago, and it brought to light...
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July 26, 2022
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What You Can and Cannot Change About Dementia
Let me start with the short answer to a question we raised in the email announcement of today’s post. ...
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June 21, 2022
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In the Caregiver's Words

Recent Client Praise

Only about one in seven adults over age 65 do any kind of routine strength training, according to the experts. Those six in seven who are neglecting their exercise regimens are the people who are hastening nature's unfortunate digression to greater bone and muscle loss as well as decompensation owing to other common chronic diseases. And people with conditions like heart disease, diabetes or arthritis can help delay the worsening of these conditions by regular exercise. Exercise also is a great way to be sure that an older adult can "take care of themselves" longer and along the way, it reduces stress and improves their mood. Engaging in regular physical exercise is one of the healthiest things older adults can do to maintain their health and well-being. If you are a caregiver to an older loved one, encouraging them to be more physically active is good for their bodies as well as their mental outlooks. But some older adults may fear that it will be too hard to exercise or that it may even harm them. The first thing to do is talk to their provider to see if exercise is safe; be sure to note if the provider personally is in reasonable shape before asking their opionions. If you will receive a valid answer, then begin to ask about what kinds of exercise. And remember to encourage your older loved one not to try to get back into great shape the very first day at the gym. If it has taken a few decades to get out of shape, and it clearly will take more than a few sessions to get back into shape; only on the "Biggest Loser" television program will it all happen within one viewing hour. So how to start?
1. Balance - one-third of adults over age 65 and one half of those over 80 will fall each year. Exercises that help to restore the coordination of the muscles that help one walk, stand and stoop will go far in creating a safer self.
2. Stretching - flexibility is as important as balance, so gentle stretches help to make muscles more pliable and nimble. Stretching alone will not improve strength, but they will be a counterpoint to strengthening to avoid injury while the body gets stronger.
3. Strengthening - we see too many ads about low testosterone levels being responsible for men's bodies losing mass (beware of the cardiovascular risk of these hormone replacement therapies). Yet, working on building muscle mass also helps manage weight and blood glucose levels.
4. Endurance - your older loved one should not run a marathon the first day out. Endurance is probably the last of the four goals that one reaches as an older loved one increases their workout time or mileage over a period of months or even years. Taken together these four aspects to exercise will not only make everyone's body stronger, but it also will boost the immune system. Along the way, getting into better shape will also be the best preparation for any bout with any medical condition and recovery from that condition. There is no time like the present to get into shape for getting older, and that goes for your older loved ones as well as you, the caregivers. Charlotte Bishop is a Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Care Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. Please email your questions to info@creativecaremanagement.com.
We most often think about exercise as a way to work off the calories that we may have consumed, or some of us know that endorphins are our friends as we get that “ahhh feeling” after a workout. Evidently not all of Americans have read the memo, because the latest government numbers show that 42.4% of us are obese, up 26 percent since even 2008.
Well, researchers have determined that there is at least one more great reason to keep working out…regular physical activity offer us overall protection from dementia. This is not just “one new study” syndrome. In at least three big long term studies which followed many thousands of people for years, physical activity has reduced the risk of developing dementia even in families with a history of dementia. In one study using British data scientists followed over half a million adults regularly collecting a host of specific data on people’s sports activities, rigorous workouts and even housekeeping chores. These individuals were followed for 11 years and a bit over one percent did develop dementia, but physical activity reduced the chance of being diagnosed with dementia by 35 percent. There was a reduced dementia risk even among people with a family history of cognitive issues. (Read More) In another piece of research that came out this month, scientists reviewed 38 individual pieces of research following over two million people in what is termed a “meta-analysis.” With this many studies, the variety of “exercises” tested was extensive, but the results were similar to the first study. The average risk reduction for dementia was 17 percent across the 38 studies. The researchers concluded that it seems we can do whatever exercise we like and there will be a cognitive health benefit. (Read More) You may question why the short time frame for following subjects? In another study, researchers followed children between seven and fifteen years of age for more than three decades. They were not looking for dementia diagnoses for such young cohorts, but they did measure cognitive function in midlife, and those young adults who registered higher cognitive performance in midlife also had the strong fitness records through the three decades leading to the last measurement. (Read More) So, think about exercise in a much broader way. It isn’t just running marathon’s or bench-pressing your own weight at the gym or how many laps you swim. It’s the sum total of all the regular exertion you afford your body, because it isn’t just the muscles you work out that benefit from your exertion. Your brain that lives in the same body as your muscles gets a real boost as well. It’s never too late to start some regular mental fitness workouts. Charlotte Bishop is an Aging Life Care Advisor, Geriatric Care Manager and founder of, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. She also is the co-author of How Do I Know You? A Caregiver’s Lifesaver for Dealing with Dementia.
Once in a while “yesterday’s news” is also tomorrow’s news. Earlier this year you probably heard or read that Medicare is now authorized to negotiate prices directly with drug manufacturers. It’s not a blanket permission to negotiate; it’s focused on single source, patented drugs that may be prescribed for older adults. When drugs go generic, there is competition which generally brings prices down for the consumer, but “single source” is simply code for the company that won the race to be patented gets to pretty much set the price of the “new” drug. I put the “new” in quotes, because it’s not always a truly novel medicine; it may be a combination of two or more existing drugs that can work well together to manage a medical condition like hypertension or HIV or others. This is a welcome relief to older Americans, many of whom are on fixed incomes. A study released just this past week by AARP looked at the top brand name 25 medicines with the highest spending among Part D drugs. They’ve more than tripled since their entries into the market, and they did not start out cheap. We all hear monthly reports on the consumer price index (CPI) and howl a bit when gasoline goes up 32 cents (8 percent) a gallon. Many of these new drugs didn’t start at four dollars per unit as gas may have. Their market entry price has often been in the hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. But all of this restraint by way of CMS’s negotiations will be resulting in howls of “unfair” from drug manufacturers, some calling this move “extortion” to their industry. And we’ll probably be hearing the howls for a while as the negotiations are slated to occur this year into 2024. The negotiated prices will not take effect until 2026, but we are off to the races. If you have an older adult in your family or you, yourself, qualify for Medicare, you have a home work assignment. Look to your loved one’s or your own medication list to see what the list price is for any of your branded meds. Be prepared to perhaps even drop a letter or a call to your federal representative to see where they stand on the new authorization. If they backed it when it moved through congress to become law, thank them. If they hedge on the issue or just admit they did not support the bill, ask them why. Being an active citizen just might turn out to be really good for your health! Charlotte Bishop is an Aging Life Care Advisor, Geriatric Care Manager and founder of, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. She also is the co-author of How Do I Know You? A Caregiver’s Lifesaver for Dealing with Dementia.
I have posted a number of times on how to make home safer as well as how to evaluate what kind of housing may be right for an older loved one who is moving from their lifelong home. And while I certainly am very aware of geriatric care management services that older adults can use when they make the move, I was made more aware of what a new kind of realtor called a "Senior Real Estate Specialist" can bring to the table as families put their homes up for sale. I spoke with Lisa Davis, a local Seniors Real Estate Specialist, or SRES as they are designated. Here is what she shared...
An SRES is a realtor who is uniquely trained and qualified to assist seniors in housing sales and purchases. The SRES designation is awarded to realtors who have additional education on how to help seniors and their families with later-in-life real estate transactions. Their mission is to help seniors and their families navigate the maze of financial, legal and emotional issues that accompany the sale of the home. They also draw upon the expertise of a network of senior specialists, such as estate planners, CPAs, and eldercare lawyers, and are familiar with local community resources and services. Here are just some of what an SRES brings to seniors in transition:
1. At this stage in life, it is not just a geographic move; it is about a change in life, so an SRES is trained in how to empathize with stress the big move can be.
2. Some of that compassion is shown in letting the older adult move at a pace that allows them to process how they feel and make a more comfortable adjustment; it takes the time it takes.
3. An SRES understands the emotional demands a sale can make on a senior; it is ultimately going to be not about moving things as much as it is moving memories.
4. That said, every move is different, so an SRES looks for the signals on what a particular older resident needs and follows.
5. An SRES knows that it is not just the older adult who has lived in the home who is moving; so an SRES works with seniors, adult children and caretakers.
6. An SRES is knowledgeable about the local senior housing options and geriatric care management services where the senior is headed.
7. An SRES has a network of other senior focused professionals who can assist in tax counseling, financial and estate planning, and other aspects of a sale, etc.
With more than 25 years guiding clients buying and selling their residences, Lisa Davis, a Broker with Coldwell Banker in Glenview, IL, has also earned the SRES designation. If you don’t know an SRES in your area, Lisa can help you find one. Lisa may be reached at lisa.davis@cbexchange.com for questions or comments.
Charlotte Bishop is a Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Care Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends providing senior care services to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. Please email your questions to info@creativecaremanagement.com
If you’re a musician, you want to be busy, because gigs represent a better living. If you’re an actor you want more roles in more productions, because more visibility means better contracts. If you’re a working professional, you want to be busy, because being more billable makes for a better salary. If you are a caregiver, the question becomes how busy do you want to be. And how busy is healthy for you. I had a conversation with a caregiver a while back who described his life this way. “I have gone from five hours of uninterrupted sleep a night caring for my mom to five hours of interrupted sleep a night.” This is a classic case of how we describe what we do will define how we think about what we do. Experts call it “linguistic determinism.” Does this person sound like a fulfilled or happy caregiver? Caregivers more likely than not will be busy people, but how do they feel and what are they really accomplishing? The person who is “too busy” certainly may seem like a valuable person, but in reality the caregiver who is “too busy” probably just has a consistent feeling of “time deficit.” If caregiving were breathing, this person would constantly be breathless. Being this busy also has a way of becoming a habit where the caregiver is trapped in the cycle and may even feel that there is no alternative. Who wants to admit they don’t love mom or dad or not measure up to what the caregiver perceives as everyone’s expectations? They want to measure up. Not being busy helping mom or dad must mean they don’t care, so the beat goes on. Being too busy also means that a caregiver loses sight of the goal, and they get so caught up in being busy that all the little things of mom’s or dad’s lives become the focus. All the while this is going on, the “busy caregiver” continues to take on more, not realizing that always being available actually diminishes the value of what they do and who they are. So, how does a caregiver break the cycle? It starts with language. Instead of being “busy,” perhaps the caregiver can begin talking about what gives them “satisfaction” or “fulfillment?” Instead of preparing three meals a day and cleaning house for mom or dad, perhaps a caregiver’s time can be better spent sharing stories with mom and dad with the other tasks being delegated. Or maybe there is something that the caregiver’s unique skill set allows them to bring to mom or dad that both they and their care receivers will find fulfilling…sharing photos of the grandkids, playing music together, going for a walk and conversation? And at the end of the day, the best thing caregivers can do when they reduce their frenetic “busyness” is to offer a role model to the next generation as well as others. Remember, kids are more likely to be influenced by what they see than by what you say, and ultimately they take away how what they saw made them feel. So, increase your happy and decrease your busy…and there will be a multi-generational benefit. Charlotte Bishop is a Caregiver Coach, an Aging Life Care Advisor, a Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Care Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. She also is the co-author of How Do I Know You? A Caregiver’s Lifesaver for Dealing with Dementia.
Not everyone has the genes to put them at risk for Alzheimer’s Disease. Not everyone has a lifestyle that could put them at risk for other forms of dementia or cognitive decline. But did you know that everyone’s diet…or more specifically, dietary deficiencies…can place them at risk for cognitive decline. This is one of those cases where the data are impressive. Scientists have been following over 100,000 men and women (in comparable numbers) since the late 1970s and early 1980s. In the 2010s they revisited these individuals a series of seven surveys of diet and health. Ironically, the foods that may be most delightful in the colors they add to a culinary presentation are also the ones that can most give a boost to everyone’s brain power. The scientists found that flavonoids, the part of the plants biochemical make up that offers the colors that “pop” in the produce section of the store, are aggressive protection against the forgetfulness or confusion that often are associated with advancing age. This was not one of those studies that show what happens when one group was given flavonoids and the other wasn’t – an experimental design – but the research had a large enough sample and followed these 100,000 people for a long enough time to offer a strong foundation for conclusions. In short, what we eat can affect our brain’s cognitive health, and other scientists were sufficiently impressed that the research was published in the journal Neurology. The specific elements that contributed to this “brain health” were part of what are termed flavonoids like the beta carotene in carrots or flavone in strawberries or anthocyanin in apples and other produce. The more flavonoids that people in the study consumed the less their cognition declined. (Flavonoids include flavonols, flavones, flavanones, flavan-3-ols, anthocyanins, polymeric flavonoids, and proanthocyanidins.) The beneficial foods extended beyond strawberries and carrots to include bananas, oranges, grapefruit, celery and peppers…basically look for a brightly colored vegetable or fruit, and you have a cognitive reward. The positive impact of these foods included better short term memory or recall, ability to process and follow instructions, better engagement in group conversation, easier navigation of familiar places or just plain less forgetfulness or confusion. Pretty good reward for maintaining a healthy diet! The scientists go so far as to recommend starting the healthy diet as early as possible, because it is never too early to have a sharp brain. The downside? Well, the scientists found that some of our less favorite foods also are good for our brains: winter squash, raw spinach, onions and brussels sprouts. Perhaps this is a reminder that we should plan our meals with the less desirable vegetables to be followed by a healthy and tasty desserts with strawberries or apples or peaches? Charlotte Bishop is a Caregiver Coach, an Aging Life Care Advisor, a Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Care Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. She also is the co-author of How Do I Know You? A Caregiver’s Lifesaver for Dealing with Dementia.