“Choose your attitude. Your attitude is your reaction to what life hands you, and only you can choose that reaction.” I have had a copy of this poster stuck to one of my kitchen cupboards for ages, finding it useful on the days when I find it hard to have a positive attitude. Attitude is…
It is time for a reprieve from talking, thinking and writing about dementia, and instead to publish something more lighthearted! It is not easy to take a day off though, as it is in our face most of the time. It is just over a year ago (2 September 2012) that I set the goal to…
In life, whether it is in a professional, friend or family relationship, or it is caring for a person with dementia or some other illness, we often hear the phrase, ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” I think this is a rough translation of the 10th Commandment, and hear it often.…
Today’s blog is a bit of a lazy one, an article Speakup on younger onset dementia from DPS News which I have copied in full to save you the trouble of heading off to another website. Quite a few of the people who read this blog mention they find it a bit tedious having to link…
A cyberfriend suggested I write about this; “Alzheimer’s disease has one image, dementia another.” Last week at the launch of a DVD made by Domiciliary Care SA about younger onset dementia, I was asked by a woman if Alzheimer’s was dementia. This was curious to me, as the group in attendance were all people related…
“This article (published on Dementia Care News) summarises effective strategies for the detection and treatment of late-life depression. Older patients can be screened for depression using a standard rating scale. It is then possible to initiate treatments such as antidepressants or evidence-based psychotherapy, and to monitor depression symptoms. Patients who do not improve can be…
This morning, I received an email from SF (someone I don’t know), whose first name is the same as a girlfriend SP, and whose last name is the same as my girlfriend’s husband’s first name. My mind played tricks on me, and I saw it as coming from my girlfriend, a not uncommon mistake that…
Fear is a constant companion of most people living with a diagnosis of dementia. I’ve been thinking a lot lately about fear and dementia, and its impact when a person is diagnosed with dementia, or living with the symptoms of dementia. In the article Fear drives shadowing of Alzheimer’s caregivers written by Angela Lunde, it…
After reading the following blog which came into my inbox early this morning, it follows perfectly on from my blog yesterday about the impact of not getting your end of life issues organised, and I felt it important to reblog. The other thing is it is written by a wonderful woman caring for her parents,…
With or without dementia, this type of planning is imperative, and probably should be discussed in the senior years of a teenager’s school life, at the same time they are taught about voting and driving. If young adults were encouraged to think about life and death more fully, it would be something they might even…
An online friend has given me some topics to write about, and today I thought I’d try a NaNoWriMo style writing of this one; “How do you feel about what the future holds for you – the future in 1 year, in 2 years and in 5 years? How does it make you feel? What…
There has been a lot of press recently in Australia about the overuse, and abuse of the use of antipsychotic drugs in aged and dementia care, and rather than reinvent the word-wheel, my blog today is to link you to a couple of articles. Premature deaths linked to drugs in nursing homes Up to…
The real price of a diagnosis of dementia is endemic and systemic DISCRIMINATION, caused by IGNORANCE and STIGMA. In every area, people with dementia are being denied the right to contribute. People with dementia are being discriminated against, and their rights are being violated by the very people who claim to be working for us.…
The stigma and ignorance continue. Today I sat through another meeting, where one topic on the agenda was about whether to nominate a person with dementia to join a Ministerial committee, to represent this committee I am on. Sadly, there was not one person there who felt it suitable, and in fact one carer suggested perhaps…
One online friend has asked me to explore and write about older people not wanting to accept a diagnosis of dementia, and how they often don’t want to talk about it or involve themselves and their families in this new world. Many older people I know won’t even talk to their doctors about their memory loss…
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