Older people cared for in specialized geriatric hospital units tend to decline at a slower pace than those given conventional hospital care, recent research suggests. Aging brings a certain amount of natural deterioration in cognitive performance, ...

When human rights activist Terry Waite spoke recently in support of Gary McKinnon, the noted Pentagon hacker, it made quite a stir. Waite is a former Beirut hostage, imprisoned for four years in Lebanon in ...

Terrell Harris Dougan had a perfectly normal life. And then her sister Irene was born. That Went Well details Dougan's true-life adventures and mishaps in living with a mentally disabled sibling. Her sharp wit and humorous ...

People with both intellectual disability and mental illness are a small population -- less than one percent of people worldwide. But it’s a small population with very big needs. In 1983, Robert Fletcher, DSW, ACSW ...

Back pain is one of the most frequent disabling conditions in Western societies. The management of patients varies considerably within and between countries, and not many treatments work in the long term. The Alexander Technique ...

It’s called the “other” dual diagnosis. While most professionals and laypeople understand dual diagnosis to mean those who suffer from both mental illness and substance abuse, the term is also used for those with the ...

There’s a sense of magic that occurs when a grandmother snuggles next to her grandchild and reads a book or a grandfather tells his grandchildren the stories of his own youth. While the relationship ...

Here come the holidays. For many parents with special needs kids, here comes more stress. No matter how many times you have tried to explain the special needs of your special child, the extended family, ...

If you are in your mid to late 50s or older and have an intellectually disabled adult child living at home, you are part of the first generation whose disabled kids may well outlive them. ...

The college-age daughter of a friend of mine once told me how, when she was growing up, she was jealous of the extra attention that her twin brother got from their parents. She was angry ...

It’s hard to know with any child when to say no, when to say yes, how much to push or set limits, or when to let him or her try to take flight, knowing he ...

Grandparenting is a delicious second chance for nurturing a child. Chances are you looked forward to using hard-won lessons from your experience as a parent to do it better this time. Chances are you looked ...

If someone you love is diagnosed with cancer or a life-threatening disease, you may feel desperate and completely helpless. But it doesn't have to be that way. Research has shown us that family and friends can ...

People often have questions about serious illness and what can be done to help a person emotionally when they are coping with a serious medical condition. Here are some answers. Q. How important is it to ...

There are many types of chronic illness, from diabetes and AIDS to arthritis and persistent fatigue. While medical science has made great strides in developing effective treatments for the physical effects of these diseases, many ...