I've been part of my Caregiver's Support Group since well before the pandemic began, in person. Very close to the onset of the pandemic we moved to virtual sessions. I really appreciate the sharing of others in the group, the listening we do, and occasionally the gentle queries we offer each other about something they've shared. The queries can lead to new insights for each other. Heidi offers her professional skills as she sees a need for them.
In the end of the time each of us has likely taken away some new learning or wisdom. Sometimes we call each other to offer or receive support. The group is a gift in my life.
My wife has Primary Progressive Aphasia, a rare Progressive brain disease that starts by attacking the ability to process language, memory, and other processes. It moves on to attack the body and it eventually is fatal. I was devastated when I met Dr. Spitz. She quickly got me involved with the Brainiacs, and I met other people who had similar problems and situations and needed help and community. I learned how to better engage with my wife and her condition. I learned how to deal with the stress of suddenly becoming a 24-hour caregiver. I am now a part of an amazing community that helps me to get by one day at a time. There are hundreds of people who know my wife and her condition and hold her in love and solidarity every day. I thank God for being lucky enough to meet Dr. Spitz and the Brainiacs!
i had a stroke - a brain bleed - in 2014. Not the usual kind, but a ruptured brain malformation. Left me with balance and other issues. Heidi Spitz, who started the Brainiacs and leads a therapy group I'm in, got me an aide, using Brainiacs, when I needed help, and Joe Romano, director of Brainiacs, connected me with a Brainiacs guy to contact daily as I requested, because I fall and nothing like this is available if you're not a Senior.
Sudden damage to the brain is so devastating. My husband a renowned professor at CUNY Baruch suffered a major decline due to lewey body dementia. Suddenly he was unable to create lesson plans and no longer able to challenge his students in their efforts to continue in their premed majors. Ed was suicidal and severely depressed. Thru the efforts and guidance of Dr. Heidi Spitz and her alignment of similar patients Ed was able to bounce back, not completely but to a great extent. Now Ed had to retire. Now he attends a daycare program in Williamsburg, VA. There he teaches a weekly session on plants we enjoy and benefit from them in our daily lives. Ed’s love of teaching and his exceptional teaching skills were saved by Brianiac’s work and deep concern for him. Dr. Spitz never gave up even in Ed’s darkest times.