A Caregiver's Memoir: The Bipolar Dementia Art Chronicles

A memoir of my experience as the primary caregiver for my father and ex-mother-in-law. How I dealt with their dementia, Alzheimer's and physical decline, as well as my own bipolar condition. A journal of our laughter and our pain.

Read my personal essay blog on aging, loss, grieving, caregiving, and coping with everyday life.

Amazon Reviews:

"I began reading this book because of the references to manic depression and art but quickly found this to be a book of much broader scope. The reader is brought along with Taetzsch on a journey of self-discovery as she struggles not only with her identity as a bipolar artist but also as she takes on the role of caregiver for her father, who suffers from Alzheimers, and her aging mother-in-law.

Taetzsch navigates the complexity of aging and illness and family dynamics to the backdrop of her work as a successful painter. Through all of this stuggle we see her emerge with a greater understanding of herself and others. As a reader brought along on her journey I found myself awakened to similar insights within my own life. This is a must-read for anyone interested in balancing creative energy with trauma." --by John Allison

"Lynne Taetzsch's issues of aging parents, sibling conflict, depression, bipolar disorder, sandwich generations, health care bureaucracies and facilities, the creative instinct, the meaning of life, and the possibility of happiness will touch a wide readership in our times. Told with quiet humor and insight, her memoir is both healing and compulsively readable." --Pamela Evans, Evans Editorial Services.

About the Author

 

Amazon Reviews:

"Lynne Taetzsch does those of us dealing with infirm elderly relatives a great favor. Her candid account of caring for her father and (ex)mother-in-law reveals all the hesitations, resentments and, most of all, the imperative of LOVE which characterizes this situation. Taetzsch is hard on herself, revealing with utmost candor moments of annoyance and even anger, as she moves along in this journey, which is complicated by her own bipolar condition. What is most clear is her over-the-top devotion to these two figures in her life, her constancy and her relentless drive to make their existence as comfortable as possible as they "decline" into their early/mid 90's and meet their eventual demise.
So many of us face similar situations (although who would go so far as to take primary responsibility for an ex-mother-in-law! This speaks volumes about Taetzsch's innate generosity). I found the vignettes of daily situations most helpful;they showed the kind of small disasters (incontinence, for example, or the total disruption of daily schedules)that can test even the most loving and dedicated of caregivers.
Taetzsch, an accomplished professional artist, evidently found her own personal solace in making art. This dimension of her experience is worthy of greater exposure, perhaps a sequel to this touching, easily readable, and great contribution to works (and how-to's) on caring for the elderly." --by Dogwalker Bliss

"The book is well written and insightful on many levels. It is a must read for caregivers and families dealing with issues openly and honestly.

Ms. Taetzsch is a very gifted writer and artist. " --by Andrew Spriegel

 

A Caregiver's Memoir

The Bipolar Dementia Art Chronicles

Paperback, 244 pages, $14.95

When you order here, Lynne will personally sign your copy.

The book may also be purchased in regular or e-book editions from Booklocker.Com, Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, I-Tunes, or your local bookstore.

"What a page-turner your book is! I read it in just a couple of sittings; it was hard to put down." --G.C.

"Lynne Taetzsch lovingly describes how her relationships with her elderly father and ex-mother-in-law gradually shift from adult child to caregiver as their health slowly declines. Her description of their personalities and behavior is never sentimental, and she portrays both their positive attributes and their quirks and foibles with a discerning eye. Along the way, she shows us how a typical family, sometimes dysfunctional, casts its members into particular roles. Interwoven with this theme, Ms. Taetzsch relates how her personal struggles affect her development as an artist, both for good and for bad. Lastly is Ms. Taetzsch's description of the effects of her bipolar disorder and its treatments on her life with her family and her ability to produce art. This book would be well worth reading simply as a journal of a woman's role as a caregiver in a somewhat eccentric extended family. However, what makes it remarkable is the interweaving of the other themes of artistic development and living with a serious mental disorder." --Gerard P. Lippert, MD, Psychiatrist, Tompkins County Mental Health Center

The Bipolar Dementia Art Chronicles, Paperback, 244 pages, $14.95

When you order here, Lynne will personally sign your copy.

The book may also be purchased in regular or e-book editions from Booklocker.Com, Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, I-Tunes, or your local bookstore.