Is it possible to live well with dementia? Yes. Is it possible to live well with dementia every day? No, not in my opinion, but that’s my opinion. Having lived with Alzheimer’s for the last two years, if I’ve learned anything, it's to be honest with myself.
If I’m having a bad day, it’s no good pretending everything is fine. It’s more productive to admit it’s a tough day and look at ways to make it better.
So what does living well with dementia look like? I guess different people have different ideas as to what constitutes living well. For me, it’s about finding peace and contentment, and having fun. These can be very hard, especially when your brain doesn’t want to cooperate, and if the world feels like a very scary place, which it does some days. The text books say ‘find ways to relax’ – all good advice until you trip down the stairs because your ‘spatial awareness’ is playing havoc with your balance. It’s not that easy relaxing when you’re in a heap on the hall floor – but hey! When the initial shock has worn off, and my pride has recovered, I can laugh at how funny it must have looked. So this is a good coping strategy and a key for me to live well with dementia – to be able to laugh especially at one’s self. Yes, it is frustrating when you can’t do simple tasks and forgetting things becomes a way of life, but dwelling on the things you can’t do only serves to disempower you and anyone living with dementia knows that’s the last thing you want. Joy Watson continues these thoughts at Sage Journals. Click here for the complete article.
Joy shares her experience with Dementia-Friendly Support Groups in the following video:
SOURCE:
- Dementia, January 2016 vol. 15 no. 1 4-5
Depends on the stage and type. Lewy Body Dementia? No. Early onset vascular dementia and Alzheimer's yes. For a while. Then no for all three.
ReplyDeleteRight - cruel to suggest that "most" people can live with Alzheimers in the community and be happy - going to shops and other places - makes caregivers who have to put their loved ones in a facility feel guilty as heck.
DeleteExcellent share; I only had this article as pdf, which will not be accepted into "newsLetter" format for Dementia Symptom Perspectives. This format will work nicely instead. THANKS --Tru
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