Friday, October 19

1:00-4:00 pm  Registration -- Hospitality Room -- free Chair Massages available throughout the afternoon

2:30-3:30 pm  Your R&R Begins!  Choose from:

  A. The Joy of Belly Dancing
Explore how relaxing and fun it can be to move to music. Come share laughs and sisterly (Sorry, guys!) support as we novices gamely attempt to follow Dina's dance movements. This workshop is always a conference favorite! Facilitated by Dina, a longtime WSA member.

 or.. B. Laughter is the Best Medicine: Comedy Clips from Some of the Greats.   (Bring jokes to share!)

3:45-5:00 pm  Choose from:

  A. Writing with Rachel Hadas
Writing about one's own experience as a Well Spouse is amazingly beneficial in many ways. Former Well Spouse Rachel will lead some writing exercises, talk about technique, explore some of the vast and growing literature of caregiving, and answer questions.

Rachel Hadas, Board of Governors Professor of English at the Newark campus of Rutgers University, is the author of more than a dozen books of poetry, essays, and translations.  Her book Strange Relation: A Memoir of Marriage, Dementia and Poetry  was published by Paul Dry Books in 2011.  A new book of poems, The Golden Road, is due out in October 2012.

 B. Home Alone: When Your Spouse is in a Nursing Home with WS Dave Goldenberg.
This will be an informal discussion of the practical and emotional issues which accompany nursing home placement. Practical issues may include how to partner with the staff to ensure quality care for your spouse, whether to bring your spouse home for special occasions, and how to help them adjust to their new environment. Emotional issues may include dealing with your own possible guilt and sadness, your spouse's possible anger at the placement, and your feelings about how to move forward once the responsibility of hands-on care has been delegated.

5:30 pm  Cocktail Hour with Hors D'oeuvres (Cash Bar) 

6:30 pm  Dinner with Keynote Address : "Hope" by Diana Denholm, Ph.D. (author of The Caregiving Wife's Handbook and former well spouse)

8:45 pm  Monuments by Moonlight Bus Tour (leaves from hotel and returns to it approximately 90 minutes later)  Former well spouse David Lyon will be our tour guide


Saturday, October 20

7:30-9:00 am  Buffet Breakfast (Vantage Point Restaurant on top floor)

9:00-10:15 am
  A. The Challenges of Ambiguous Loss with Jeffrey Kreutzer, Ph.D.
Dr. Kreutzer, as Director of Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center's program in rehabilitation psychology and neuropsychology, coordinates the treatment of patients with a wide variety of neurological disabilities.  He is the Director of VCU's federally-designated Traumatic Brain Injury Model System of Care, and is one of the few psychologists in the country trying to develop marriage counseling techniques tailored to couples dealing with brain injury.

  B. An Ill Spouse's Personal Choice  with Joni Aldrich  

  C. A Workshop  for Former Well Spouses with formers Janet Cromer, RN, LMHC and Jim Anderson

10:30-11:45 am

  A. The Six Step Communication and Compassionate Resolution Strategy with Diana Denholm, Ph.D.

A well spouse/ill spouse marriage is fraught with troublesome emotions and sensitive issues. As a well spouse herself, Dr. Denholm drew on her work as a psychotherapist to develop a strategy for navigating these conflicts.  In this workshop, participants will learn each step of this process and come up with a sample resolution or two for their own issues/concerns. All will participate through private writing, and some may want to share their resolutions with the group. Once learned, these skills can be applied to everyone's own life circumstances.

  B. Legal Issues for Spousal Caregivers with Elizabeth Wildhack, Esq.
This workshop will present an overview of the legal documents which all well spouses should have in place.  Durable powers of attorney, advance medical directives and guardianships are some of the issues which will be discussed.  Ms. Wildhack is an attorney in Arlington, VA who specializes in elder law, and special needs and estate planning.

  C. Former Well Spouses Workshop, Part 2
12:00 Noon  Buffet Lunch in Vantage Point Restaurant (top floor)

Afternoon Free Time...
To do whatever you want!  (Sign-up sheets available earlier to facilitate group excursions) -- So many choices!

• It's just a five minute walk to Metro, and ten minutes later via the Smithsonian station you can be on the National Mall ready to tour the iconic landmarks of our nation's capital, or visit the world-class exhibits in the renowned museums and art galleries. gosmithsonian.com or washington.org
• Walk across the Key Bridge and browse in Georgetown's many boutiques.  georgetowndc.com
• Hike to nearby Theodore Roosevelt Island. nps.gov/this/index.htm

7:00-11:30 pm  Dinner, Gift Basket Raffle, Book Signing, Entertainment ("The Sound of Well Spouse" mini-musical premiere) & Dance with DJ

Sunday, October 21

7:30-9:30  Buffet breakfast in Vantage Point Restaurant (top floor)

10:00-11:15 am

  A. Healing Traumatic Stress and Compassion Fatigue  with Janet Cromer (author, psychotherapist, and Certified Compassion Fatigue Educator)

 B. Stress Management  & The Science and Art of Self-Care with Ruthe Nelson, M.A.

 C. Workshop with psychologists Stephen Holland and Richard Zuckerberg (who is also a WS). Topic TBD.

11:30 am  Closing Ceremony 

12:00 noon  Hike to nearby Roosevelt Island with local former well spouse David Kendall (weather permitting)