Over the last few years, the concept of Dementia Villages, Memory Cafes, Dementia specific shopping lanes, etc. has been growing, and worse, the villages are currently being lauded as ‘best practice’, in spite of there being NO evidence for them. Just like the Dementia Friendly Community or Dementia Friends initiatives, they were developed by people…
A few months ago, I wrote a poem saying I wanted my old (pre-dementia) life back! I was either having a really bad day or was more sleep deprived than usual. My life is so much richer since having been diagnosed with dementia, and it has been my third greatest gift in my life. One…
In today’s blog post, I am highlighting a piece written by Sonya Barsness, The Faces of BPSD published recently. Sonya is a gerontologist, and it says on her blog; “I am a bit of a rebel – I like to challenge thinking – and revisionist is a term that seems to capture this. A revisionist is…
Let’s STOP Pathologising Normal Human Responses For #WAM2018, and on day 3, I am continuing my series of blogs, highlighting why many other people also believe we need to BanBPSD. On June 9, 2018 Susan Macaulay wrote an open letter to members of the dementia community worldwide, highlighted below. She outlines what happened to her…
Urgent Attention: Gabriella Rogers and 9News This letter is in response to the entitled “New Drug to Treat Behavioural Issues in Dementia Patients”, publicised on Aug.18th 2018 at 6pm. “This report misrepresents both the facts and the real-world experiences of people living with dementia. The report positions all behaviour, moods and reactions within the frame of a dementia diagnosis…
Most Saturdays (for me), I attend a Brain health ‘motivational’ meeting to help us stay focused on being healthy and staying positive. It is hosted by two of the Board members of Dementia Alliance International., for anyone with dementia, or for someone supporting a person with dementia, worried about their own brain health or about…
Having been nicknamed Smiley as a young school girl, I can attest to the power of optimism. I found this quote in an airline magazine recently, but forgot to write down who it comes from! Maybe Meryl Streep, but I’m not 100% sure! Anyway, it resonated with me deeply, as I have been innately optimistic…
