Joseph J. Sivak MD

A poignant memoir by Joseph J. Sivak M.D. about his mother who became ill with alzheimers disease at the age of 62. The youngest of 6 children he was only a teenager when his mother became ill and his reminiscing fills this book with many heart-wrenching stories about his experiences caring for his mother while still trying to live in a teenager's world. He also explains to the reader that the death of his father one year before his mother got alzheimers was another devastating blow to his emotional stablity and sense of security. He reaches out to his older siblings and sister Madeline in particular but they are all busy leading their own lives. They do the best they can to support him but he is lonely and misses having a family and particularly a homelife when his mother is put in a nursing home. It is with compassion yet a mixture of his own anger and depression that lingers throughout his life as he tries so hard to cope with caring for his mother through her illness. The reader can feel his pain but also his triumph as he gets into medical school and suceeds in becoming a doctor, husband and father.

This book is worth reading whether you have a family member or not who has a form of dementia. It is a celebration of a young man's struggle to still love the mother that is literally disappearing before his very eyes daily. Dr. Sivak leaves the reader with a great deal of knowledge about this disease and also with some good information about dealing with the emotional turmoil that comes with caretaking a person who has this illness. I would definitely suggest this book to anyone who is interested in this topic and anyone who wants to witness a young man's evolution into a compassionate human being with a heart dedicated to treating those with psychiatric illnesses. I believe readers will appreciate the author's willingness to share intimate details of his personal journey caring for his mother, an alzheimers patient.… (mehr)

Joseph Sivak tells a personal journey as his beloved mother suffers from and ultimately dies of Alzheimer's disease. He relates his mother's illness and it's affect on him as her caregiver for several years, a duty that was overwhelming to a young man still in high school. He tells of the anger, grief, and helplessness felt by himself as well as his five siblings. He also writes from his perspective as a physician/psychiatrist, informing us of the medical side of this illness, the symptoms his mother displayed, the unknowns of 30 years ago, and the diagnosis and medications of today. Even though there are several medications that slow down the progress of the disease, there is no cure. As the child of a parent with dementia, I found his personal story and medical reports interesting.… (mehr)

Told from the heart, this book truly lets you into the world of Alzheimer's patients and their families. The grief, loss, anger and loneliness felt by the author as his mother was slowly stolen by her disease is painfully present as he shares the story of a remarkable lady and her imprint on the world long after she herself has departed. Joseph J Sivak M.D. is a psychiatrist who, at the age of 17, became the primary caregiver for his mother. She was suffering from the then little know disease that has no cure and robs it’s victims of who they are. Throughout his struggles with college and medical school and with nowhere to call home Sivak develops the empathy and understanding that he later carries to his psychiatry practice.

To any one who has ever lost a loved one, I recommend this book, also to all who have had the responsibility of caring for one who could no longer care for themselves. Sivak’s honesty and openness about the loneliness and anger, the confusion of loss though the lost one still lives, the need to reach out and be connected with any one for even a brief moment so you aren’t standing in the pit alone touches one with a stinging sense of familiarity.… (mehr)