Healing My Brain With a Ketogenic Diet
If you have been following me for a while, way back when I had my blog, Bipolar Spirit, then you know I have been on dozens of medications to treat my bipolar II disorder, PTSD, panic disorder, binge eating disorder, ADD, and cognitive decline and none of them worked. I have been in different kinds of therapy for over twenty years, and while I slowly got better in some ways, my brain still was just not working correctly. While I intellectually had healed a lot of the trauma a
5 Reasons Montessori Methods Work for People with Dementia: Montessori Education Week 2017
The last week in February is always Montessori Education Week. This year we celebrate 110 years of Montessori education! To honor Montessori Education Week, I would like to go over five main reasons why Montessori methods work for people with dementia. 5 Reasons Montessori Methods Work for People with Dementia See the person, not the illness. Dr. Montessori always saw children as unique individuals. When she was told a child was “deficient” and “un-teachable”, she did not def
Person-Centered Dementia Care and the Adidas Ad by Eugen Merher
There is a commercial for Adidas shoes by Eugen Merher going around the internet right now. According to Boredpanda, apparently Merher made the ad as a spec spot (which is an ad you create for a product and you are not paid for it, but you use it basically as part of a demo reel for yourself) and sent it to Adidas, but did not get a response from them about it. The ad is so touching, it is making viewers cry, for good reason. We can all identify with the sadness that comes fr
Preparing the Environment for Dementia: The Importance of Contrast
In Montessori based dementia care, we focus of the Montessori principle of creating a prepared environment. This is my first entry in my series with tips, called “Preparing the Environment for Dementia,” which focuses on how to prepare an environment for a person with dementia to ensure as much independence, success, and decreased frustration as possible. One thing that care partners often do not know is that elders in general and most people with dementia have a loss of cont
5 Tips for Including a Person with Dementia in Important Events: Lessons from the Cleveland Cavalier
My hometown basketball team, the Cleveland Cavaliers,’ won the 2016 NBA Finals. Unless you come from Cleveland, you have no idea how important this is to Clevelanders. We have not won a major sports championship in 52 years!! Cleveland has never been able to outrun its’ label of “mistake on the lake,” and people are always joking about how terrible Cleveland is. However, those of us who were born and raised there know how great our city is and we really want everyone else to
To Will Ferrell and Mike Rosolio: It Is Not Funny to Make Fun of People With Alzheimer's
Dear Will Ferrell and Mike Rosolio, I was in shock when I heard that Mr. Rosolio wrote this script and somehow thought that making fun of Ronald Reagan’s dementia was at all okay. I was saddened to hear Mr. Ferrell supports this and will produce and star in the film, “Reagan.” (“Set at the start of the ex-president’s second term when he was suffering from Alzheimer’s, “Reagan” follows the commander-in-chief as he succumbs to dementia and is convinced by an ambitious intern th
What Promise to Make for Dementia Care
The Washington Post just came out with an article called "Promise me you'll never put me in a nursing home," which talks about the difficulty of making such a promise to our loved ones with dementia, because the reality is that many of us cannot keep that promise. It brings up how many people cannot for a variety of reasons- work, kids, nursing care that we are unable to provide on our own, cost, burnout, depression, etc… The article states: “To Bill Thomas, a geriatrician wh
Dementia, Death, Grief, and the Kitchen Sink
I can’t remember how to clean the black markings from pots off of a white porcelain kitchen sink. My mom would know how to do that. I remember her doing it when I was young, but I can’t remember what she said to do. I could have called my mom to ask her, but not anymore. Not for a while. Loosing a loved one to dementia is difficult because you grieve different types of loss at different times. Loosing someone to Alzheimer’s disease has often been called the “long goodbye” bec
Where Is My Son?: A Glimpse Into Living With Dementia
On Tuesday, I woke up with a start. I checked my phone and saw that it was 11am! I immediately panicked because I slept through my alarm and did not take my son to school. I called for my son to come into my room, but he did not come in. I called again, with no response. I got annoyed because I figured he must be in his room with his headphones on. I went into his room and it was empty. I yelled louder for my son, but he did not respond. I then got anxious and went into the l
"Remember Me" an Anthem for Alzheimer's/Dementia
On January 20, 2015, a grassroots campaign to raise funds for and awareness about Alzheimer’s and end stigma was launched by the release of the song “Remember Me,” sung by Chris Mann. Proceeds from the sale of the song go to Cure Alzheimer’s Fund (CAF). “Cure Alzheimer's Fund is a non-profit organization dedicated to funding research with the highest probability of preventing, slowing or reversing Alzheimer's disease through venture-based philanthropy.” Since the founders of
