Take a look at the dots in the box and try and find the black one. Wow, what happened! Optical illusions show us we can’t believe everything we see? People with dementia often see something we don’t, but yet, do we actually see or perceive what others do? Our brain constructs our reality, and it unconsciously alters our perceptions of what’s there to meet our desires or

They say the ghosts of our past eventually come back to haunt us. Those with dementia usually lose short term memory and begin to remember people and events from their past that were consciously forgotten long ago. Their ghosts often revisit mistaking a grown son for a long-deceased brother or husband or daughter as her mother; they resemble the younger version. They ask when their parents are

When I first began working with people experiencing dementia, it was apparent their inner world was drastically different from ours. They were on the inside looking out and everyone around them must seem “Out there”. Because I was outside, I wanted to know what “In there” for a person with dementia was like. We usually don’t think much about the reality we live in or what our

What is life force and what happens to it during dementia? Life force is the animating force within all living beings. We are all composed of energy. Every action the body makes has to have a spark of energy to trigger the response. The brain is a literal storm of electrical impulses, igniting neurons to receive or send information. Our automatic nervous system, like the beating of

False Evidence Appearing Real Even the word dementia elicits feelings of fear. Most seniors fear they could be at risk of developing dementia, especially if they are over 80 when percentages increase. An actual diagnosis is like a death sentence creating a fear of what will come, and if you live and care for someone experiencing the roller coaster symptoms, each day can bring fear of what

Why do people with dementia begin to avoid water, not wanting to shower or even drink the stuff? Any of the following scenarios could be true. Dementia often causes changes to sensory input and how we see, feel and taste water may not be how they do. Shower Panic “A stranger is taking off my clothes. I’m cold and naked! There’s a loud sound coming from the

The caregiving experience can become better. “When you change the way, you look at something that something changes.” Understand why. Our conscious mind is the director. It makes decisions and responds to our environment and the actions of our other mind. Our subconscious receives this information, retains it and acts upon it automatically, it’s the program. Imagining and visualization are conscious acts which send information to our