I signed up and was accepted into what sounds like an interesting study.
    It's called the Family Caregiver Writing Study. I learned about it while I was browsing unfamiliar caregiver sites, something I haven't done for awhile, and stumbled upon the study at the journal of Robert T. DeMarco. The immediately previously link will take you directly to his announcement of the study.
    The study is being launched in an attempt to document, through physical evidence, whether caregivers writing about their lives and their particular stresses helps to reduce stress. It will involve strict periods of writing and several measurements of saliva cortisol levels, timed, with the writing, to show whether cortisol levels, which apparently go up and down according to one's stress levels, are affected by writing about one's situation.
    After reading all the material online about the study, I contacted the director of the study, Dr. Howard K Butcher, Tuesday. For obvious reasons, with which I'm sure all caregivers can identify, I was intrigued by the possibility of gathering concrete evidence for something that most of us caregivers who journal, either online or privately, believe in our bones: Having an expressive outlet for the caregiving period of our lives helps us endure the strains and stresses peculiar to caregiving.
    The reason I contacted Dr. Butcher previous to applying to be a study participant is that I wondered if the fact that I journal about my caregiving situation on my own, frequently and fairly thoroughly, would disqualify me from the study. It occurred to me that, considering the frequency of my journaling, my cortisol levels would already be affected and, since the demands of the study last approximately six weeks, there would be no way that I would stop journaling for the study, so I figured this would disqualify me.
    Dr. Butcher, though, was excited that someone who already journals was interested in being a part of the study and curious about what sort of stats journaling caregivers would display. So, I volunteered.
    I have sent in my consent form and am awaiting its receipt, at which point I will be emailed with what is referred to as an "ACCESS code" in order to enter the site pertaining to the study, where further information about the study will be disseminated and the writing part of the study will be conducted.
    I believe the study is continuing to look for participants, so, if you're interested, check out the link above that is connected to information about the study and how to apply. There is an interesting apologia for and abstract about the study, the first entitled "Emotional Expression as an Intervention to Reduce Alzheimer Disease Family Caregiver Burden", followed immediately by the abstract, on this page, an adjunct to Dr. Butcher's Home Page, as well, that you might want to read.
    At this point I rather expect I won't be publishing a blow by blow account of my participation in the study. However, I asked Dr. Butcher to let me know when results of the study are published and keep me in mind as someone who would be interested in reading those results.
    One of the reasons I am particularly interested in being a part of the study at this time is that, unlike the previous few years in which I have been embraced by a sense of peace about what Mom and I are doing, for a variety of reasons, some having to do with Mom's anemia and other health issues, some having to do with the business of caregiving, some probably having to do with issues of which I am unaware, I'm at a low point and am experiencing what is, for me, unusual stress. This seems to be a good time to enter such a study. As well, Dr. Butcher mentioned that the writing required of the study is probably significantly different than what I normally do in my journal. This piques my curiosity.

    And, what about the Mom? Well, nothing much different than usual on post shot days. It's becoming apparent that the first and second days after her shot are pretty much a wash: The first day is when she experiences physical discomfort; the second is when she is unusually tired. On the third day she perks up and is ready to go; well, if you've been reading me for any length of time, you know what I mean. If you're new, here's a description of a "perky" day:

• I notice, once she is upright, that she is sitting and standing straighter than on bad days.
• She moves with more confidence; sometimes a bit too much confidence. At any rate, I don't constantly have to urge her to "straighten up". Although I always have to do "straighten up" coaching, on the third day she retains a good posture much longer than on a bad day.
• She is easy to work with during bathing and much more likely to participate, i.e., I don't have to direct her through every movement when she washes those parts of her body that I don't wash.
• She is much more likely to participate in animated conversations with me and the cats on the good days.
• She doesn't merely zone out when she's watching something on TV; she initiates conversations about what she's watching and is quick to tell me if she isn't particularly interested in something.
• It takes only 30 - 45 minutes to get her from initial awakening into the bathroom; on bad days it can take an hour or more.
• Her thirst is evident on good days and she is likely to let me know when she's finished a particular liquid and wants more.
• She is more likely to complain about things that bother her on good days...and more likely to be testy if I overstep what she considers to be my caregiving boundaries.
• She actively participates in mutual teasing. For instance, on good days I often tease her that it looks like we can start her marathon training, again. If I accidentally misinterpret and mention this on a bad day, she glowers and ignores me. On a good day she usually reminds me that "the coach" is expected to train right along with the marathon runner.

    Ah, I hear her reconnaissance cough, a little earlier than I was expecting it. 1230 would be her 12-hour-sleep mark. That's another aspect of good days, come to think of it; she is more likely to chose her own rising time. Looks like she's feeling good, again, today. Better get to it.
    Later.
- posted by Gail Rae @ 11:56   email  this post