One of the first blogs I ever wrote on D4Dementia, back in May 2012, was about music for people with dementia. It charted my dad’s love of music, how it became a vital communication tool in the latter years of…
Tag: therapy
Doll therapy – Disrespectful or comforting?
One of the most controversial non-drug therapies for people with dementia is doll therapy. Before the work I do now, I knew this not as a ‘therapy’ but as the lady in my dad’s care home who occupied the room…
Researching dementia
Last week statistics were released showing that during the last year 22,000 people took part in dementia research – a 60% rise – and that 10,000 people have signed up to Join Dementia Research. Research isn’t a topic that I’ve written about…
Reablement for people with dementia
As we approach Easter, a time associated with rebirth, new life, possibility and opportunity, I have found myself thinking about how this correlates with the experience of living with dementia. Historically, a diagnosis of dementia has been seen as a…
Join the debate
Back at the start of 2013 I published a blog detailing My Dementia Wish List for the year. Ten months later seems an appropriate time to revisit some of these goals and, looking forward to the G8 Dementia Summit in…
Keep the faith
One of the first things to become bypassed in someone’s life as their dementia progresses and they become more reliant on social care can be their faith, beliefs or spirituality. This is often as a result of professionals caring for…
Remember, remember
The ‘good old days’ are often lovingly joked about as people get older. Wartime stories, tales of food shortages, working conditions, ‘make do and mend’, homes without technology and roads free of congestion can all seem very old-fashioned to my…
A ‘can do’ attitude
Watching Paralympians you cannot help but be inspired by their ‘can do’ attitude. For these athletes, there is no barrier too great or no dream they cannot fulfil, which for a society that so often sees the negative before the…
The sun is out!
There were many occasions during my father’s nine years in three different care homes when I honestly wondered if having dementia was a byword for keeping people in captivity. Day after day, week after week, residents were kept cooped up…
Singing from the same hymn sheet
Improving the quality of life for people with dementia, especially in the more advanced stages of the disease when they may have very limited communication or ability to do anything for themselves, is one of my biggest passions. Over the…