Lately I’ve been sharing more and more about my Mama’s journey with Alzheimer’s and how heartbreaking and difficult this experience has been for myself, for my family, and for my Mama.

Throughout this journey, I’ve experienced many ups and downs, and recently in the midst of a particularly hard moment, I decided that I wanted to raise more awareness about this terminal disease. Since I’ve started sharing, so many people have reached out to share their own experiences with loved ones, and one question that I received really resonated with me. It was from a person who just learned that their father has Alzheimer’s, and they wrote to me: I’m so scared. Do you have any advice for me?

After giving my answer a lot of thought, I decided to record this video. In it I share some of the things I’ve been doing to support Mama Bhasin on her journey and some reflections on my own experiences navigating the difficult emotions and grief that come with this journey.

I hope that these tips are helpful in providing some small guidance, support, and peace for any of you who are also on a journey through Alzheimer’s. And I hope you know that you are not alone, and I’m sending you so much light and love.

The post How to Support a Family Member on Their Journey with Alzheimer’s appeared first on Ritu Bhasin.

Until very recently, I hadn’t openly talked about the fact that my mama (a.k.a. the lovely Mama Bhasin) is unwell. Among other serious health concerns, my mama is living with Alzheimer’s, a neurologic disorder that affects the brain and results in a slow and steady decline over time.

As you can imagine, this is a gut-wrenching experience, even without the added stress of navigating her care throughout COVID. My heart is filled with heaviness, fear and sadness when I think about what she’s going through now and for what’s to come.

As I’ve started sharing my family’s journey, I’ve received so much love and support from others in similar situations (thank you for reaching out!), which has led me to reflect on this experience. In this video, I share the very important life lesson that’s helping me get through this difficult time.

I know I’m not the only one on a journey like this, and if you are too, know that I’m sending you lots of positive energy. You are not alone!⁠

The post The Life Lesson I’m Learning from My Mama’s Journey with Alzheimer’s appeared first on Ritu Bhasin.

As COVID rates continue to rise, the restrictions for seeing people get tighter and tighter, and the challenges of childcare are increasingly thrust into the spotlight, I’ve been thinking of another type of care that hasn’t been getting as much attention: elder care.

As a Punjabi daughter, I can’t tell you just how important elder care is for me and in my culture. Something I don’t talk about very often — but which I’m making a point to share more and more — is the difficult journey my family has been on with elder care, as we manage the care of my mama (a.k.a. Mama Bhasin, as you may know her from social media, who is living with Alzheimer’s and other serious illnesses.

Elder care is a gut-wrenching and at times isolating experience, and especially in this moment when we are forced to be physically apart from our support networks, so it’s really important that we share what we’re going through.

In this video, I name how hard this experience is and share why I think it’s so important for us to talk about our elder care journeys in this moment — and I pledge do to more of this going forward.

Watch now!

The post Why We Need to Talk More Openly About the Challenges of Elder Care appeared first on Ritu Bhasin.