Holistic Counseling may play beneficial role in Alzheimer's

From Counseling Today, March 2008, cover page article, Untapped Potential by Jonathan Rollins

"Although the study and treatment of (Alzheimer's dementia) has largely been the purview of medicine, as information about this disorder has emerged, a clear role for counseling has taken shape, " Douthit* wrote in an article for the Spring 2007 issue of ADULTSPAN Journal, published by the Association for Adult Development and Aging, a division of the American Counseling Association. "Interventions across the life span that address stress, depression management, social integration, spirituality and other targets of holistic wellness such as diet and exercise hold much promise for delaying or circumventing the cognitive disabilities associated with (Alzheimer's dementia)."

*Kathryn Douthit is a counselor with a background in biomedical sciences, with an interest in Alzheimer's disease and gerontology. She is chair adn associate professor of counseling and human development at the Univ. of Rochester.