Joan Oliver

September is National Preparedness Month. This year's theme is "Start a Conversation." Here are a few tips so that families can be prepared for anything.

How does Alzheimer's disease progress? As the Oliver family wraps up its ninth year after Tony's diagnosis with early onset dementia, it's apparent that the years have brought constant adjustments.

When a family faces an Alzheimer's disease diagnosis, everything changes. What if there was a program that offered guidance to families about where they could find resources and to create a plan? There is now through a partnership between the Alzheimer's Association and Rippl.

As the school year looms for area students, now is the time for all of us to prepare kids to be able to handle potential bullying. Equipping them to prevent it from happening is as essential as making sure they have new No. 2 pencils.

The breast cancer journey that began in February comes to an "end" of sort. The completion of radiation treatments marks the beginning of the five-year waiting period to be declared cancer-free.

The Summer Olympics offer so many sporting options that it's hard for even a rabid fan to see everything. However, it sure will be fun to watch sports that rarely get any coverage during the rest of the year.

The death of actress Shannen Doherty was a blow to her many fans. It also was difficult for those of us who are battling the same disease that she was: breast cancer.

What can employers do when an employee starts exhibiting signs of dementia? The Alzheimer's Association and Bank of America have released a new white paper that offers some tips for both employers and employees.

Goodbyes can be hard even when one is saying goodbye to a beloved television series. The recent finale of "The Incredible Dr. Pol," a favorite for more than a decade, was like that for the Olivers.

Every year, a pet meets with an unfortunate injury or worse because it became scared during Fourth of July fireworks. The loud noises often trigger pets' fight-or-flight response. Here are a few tips to keep pets safe.

Going through radiation treatments for breast cancer for a second time feels like déjà vu.

The continued controversy surrounding the treatment of the WNBA's top draft pick this year, Caitlin Clark, paints the rest of the league's players as jealous villains. Yet, physical play has always been a hallmark of the W.

During Alzheimer's & Brain Health Awareness Month, the Alzheimer's Association is offering five tips you can use to take charge of your brain health.

Trying to buy flowers from a garden center doesn't sound like a difficult task. However, when the targeted flower is nasturtium and one's husband has Alzheimer's disease, the mission can be downright herculean.

Summer days during childhood were often limited only by imagination. Fun could be found almost anywhere. Maybe it's time to tap into that wonder again.

For a lot of us, our natural inclination is to tell people that "everything is going to be OK." Although we hope that's the case, sometimes it's better to just listen and acknowledge that it's OK not to be OK.

Recent crazy weather, including a tornado in Harvard, had Team Oliver scrambling for the basement. It also was a good reminder to review what to do in the event of emergencies.

New guidelines for when women of average risk should begin getting mammograms aim to make it easier to know what to do. However, those recommendations can't save lives if women don't follow them.

In the classic movie "Gaslight," a husband with questionable motives tries to make his wife believe that she's going crazy. Sometimes being a caregiver for someone with Alzheimer's disease can feel like that, except that no one is doing any of it on purpose.

Sometimes it seems that our longtime friends will be with us forever. But life is fragile and sometimes the unthinkable happens, reminding us how important it is to hold our friends and loved ones close.

Teamwork can be the difference between success and failure in many facets of life. That's true especially when one is dealing with a cancer diagnosis.

During tax season, anxiety is high for a lot of us. After all, there are a lot of details to keep track of. The Internal Revenue Services wants taxpayers to know that they need to be on the lookout for something else: phishing and smishing scams.

Family caregivers often think they have to go it alone. However, circumstances sometimes can force them into getting some needed help. That's the situation the Olivers recently found themselves in.

The Alzheimer's Association releases its "Facts and Figures" report each year. This year, the focus is on the need for better coordination of care for those with Alzheimer's disease and for their caregivers.

Ever hear of "loud budgeting"? It's a trend that started on TikTok that even financial experts can get behind.

Dealing with loss can be one of life's most challenging situations. A Japanese pottery technique offers a creative way to think about turning those losses into something beautiful, making them easier to bear.

Life can be like a movie written by a sadistic screenwriter. That assessment from five years ago still holds true. However, here's hoping this breast cancer battle sequel is less dramatic.

The news of the closure of Spring Hill Mall in West Dundee brings a flood of memories for those of us who grew up in and around malls in the 1970s and 1980s.

After four years of breast cancer treatment, the last thing anyone wants to hear is that something suspicious was found in a yearly mammogram. Still, worrying in the days before another biopsy won't change the outcome.

The 1987 classic film "The Princess Bride" has a lot to say about the nature of true love. It also played a role in at least one real-life love story.

Football purists who have a problem with pop superstar Taylor Swift attending Kansas City Chiefs games are missing the bigger picture: Drawing more fans to the sport is a good thing, particularly if they are young girls and women.

So how did you do during Get Organized Month? What? You didn’t know this was a thing. It is and now is a good time to start decluttering.

For a lot of us, there's a disconnect between statistics about cancer and the people behind the numbers ... until we become one of those statistics.

Being the caregiver for a person with Alzheimer's disease who no longer speaks requires one part Sherlock Holmes and another part hypothesis-testing scientist. That's especially true when one's charge is less than happy.

When we're planning our annual exams this year, the Alzheimer's Association would like us to remember to "get a check-up from the neck up" too, even if we're not experiencing any memory problems.

An unwanted invader somehow eluded the Oliver family's first line of defense. That meant more drastic measures had to be taken.

2023 proved to be somewhat uneventful for the Oliver family. Compared with the endless drama of the previous few years, that was a welcome change.

The older we get, the more we recognize the names in the "notable deaths" at the end of the year. 2023 saw quite a few names appear from this Gen Xer's childhood.

'Tis the season for rushing around and looking for the best deals. It's also the busiest season for scammers. Here are a few tips to keep the Grinches at bay.

The world lost two "giants" recently with the deaths of former first lady Rosalynn Carter and former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Among their accomplishments, both were instrumental in bringing awareness to the fight against Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

A sweet new TV ad provides a gentle nudge about the need to see the world through childlike eyes every now and again.

Getting gratitude to flow isn't something that comes naturally to a lot of people. In fact, feeling and showing appreciation takes some effort. But the result can be a happier and more fulfilling life.

November is Alzheimer's Awareness Month, which is a good time to learn what the early symptoms of the disease are. That gives someone the best chance to slow down its progress.

The discovery of an old playlist without a name or creation date became a mystery to solve as well as a trip down musical memory lane.

A new field of research is looking at the possibility of using movies to help with mental health therapy. Maybe researchers can use a few of these suggestions.

Happy memories help to take the sting out of losing one's spouse little by little to Alzheimer's disease. That's even more important on wedding anniversaries.

How can you tell if you're in an abusive relationship? One clue among many is a lack of love and respect in the relationship.

Putting off routine screenings can lead to bigger problems in the long run. During Breast Cancer Awareness Month, women are encouraged to return to getting their routine mammograms.

For some of us, autumn brings an internal struggle between darkness and light, of memories of past traumas and the welcome return of turning leaves and pumpkin spice.

Adjustments are a part of sports. They also are a part of life and of caregiving for someone with dementia.