Two-thirds of Alzheimers caregivers suffer from depression. Since public assistance isn't the greatest, most caregivers are family members who have to reorganize their lives, leave work early or quit their jobs and learn how to adapt to their loved one's ever changing personality.

As humans, we naturally seek out like-minded individuals and others who we feel connected to in some way. As an Alzheimers caregiver, you will likely feel conflicting emotions and periods of depression, resentment or fear.

It's recommended that you connect with others who are going through the same experience. You can participate in a "Memory Walk" with your loved one to raise money and awareness for Alzheimers research, which will help you feel like you're taking control of an otherwise helpless-feeling situation. You can take a six-week course on "powerful tools for caregiving" or join an Alzheimers support group to discuss different techniques and air your emotions to maintain positive mental health.

Another reason to connect with an Alzheimers society is to find out about clinical trials and ways to get actively involved in finding a cure. Right now, Alzheimers is one of the most mysterious diseases affecting us, since little is known about how to halt or reverse the effects.

There aren't many early screening tests or ways to prevent Alzheimers either. By 2025, 10 million more Americans will have this degenerative disease. While the statistics leave us feeling helpless, you can make a difference by actively lobbying for more funding, more research, more Medicaid benefits and more public awareness.

Whether you and your Alzheimers patient loved one participate in a "Memory Walk," make a donation or participate in a study, you will feel like you're taking charge of your life, which is an important component in evading the depression that affects many an Alzheimers caregiver.

"When my father passed away from Alzheimer's disease, it was logical for me to spend time and money to fight it," John Osher writes on an Alzheimers Society website. "I could see research was starting to round the corner and felt that my involvement could matter." Whether donating, participating in clinical trials or raising public awareness, you have the power to make a large difference and place Alzheimers on top of the American agenda. Like with HIV or Cancer, a cure may be just around the corner, but it won't get there without many voices raising a clamor!