Supporting all who care for elders
Picture an umbrella. It’s black and appears that it could provide shelter to a small village. This umbrella is called dementia. If you hear that someone has cancer, one of your first questions is going to be, “What kind?” We understand that there is a myriad of different kinds of cancer, and each one affects the […]
Under the Umbrella Read More »
The first care conference is often long. Held a few weeks after a resident moves into care, it’s the family’s chance to meet with the doctor, nurse, physiotherapist, chaplain, dietary department and advocate. Through questions and discussion, the team gets to know the resident better, and a plan of care is worked out. It’s fluid,
I Am Not My Disease Read More »
You face a new year, and perhaps some of the struggles of the last year or two enter into the new year with you. January brings a fresh, unblemished calendar, but you carry your load and who you are with you. Sometimes, the weight of it bites into your shoulder as you try to move
The Small Miracle of Strength Read More »
There’s a lot of counting happens at this season. Have you noticed that? Advent calendars countdown until Christmas, merchants count the days until Boxing Day and then extend it a week or longer, and we count down to New Year’s. All this counting can add a lot of pressure to our schedule as the deadline
How to Care for You at Christmas Read More »
On Thursday, we are making our annual trek to Christmas shop for the residents. Four of us commandeer two carts each and fill them with fuzzy socks, lap blankets, lotion, ladies’ scarves and whatever else we can think of. This particular store is down a set of stairs, so watching us haul multiple bags up
How to Find Your Inner Santa with Gift Giving Read More »
Have you ever thought about what gives you purpose? What makes it worth getting out of bed in the morning? What gives you satisfaction at the end of the day? Which moments in your day do you look back on and treasure, because of something significant? Purpose is key for all of us. There may
How to Find Purpose With Your Elder This Christmas Read More »
Friday is “decorating day” at work. In the Community Life office, where all things creative happen, red bags of Christmas trees line the walls and boxes and bins of glittering decorations are everywhere. At 9:00, staff who usually spend their day in front of a computer screen will join those of us who work on
How to Have Yourself a Flexible Little Christmas Read More »
Family time over the holidays can be fun and exhilarating–the stuff of which memories are made. Family time over the holidays can be a disaster, a bad dream, and the birthplace of hurt feelings and misunderstanding. All this can happen in the best of families. In the same family. Over the same holiday season. If
How to Make Family “Work” This Christmas Read More »
Maybe where you live, the weather outside isn’t frightful, but the calendar is moving forward. Hallowe’en and Remembrance Day are behind us, and our neighbours to the south are celebrating Thanksgiving next week. Black Friday, Cyber Monday–however you look at it, Christmas is coming. If you are caring for someone with dementia, Christmas takes a
How To Have Christmas, Dementia and Joy Read More »
She was a sweet lady, and not that old. Her dementia was vascular, and the changes in her in the last year had been profound. She’d come to live with her son and his wife because she could no longer cope on her own. In our little townhouse complex, I lived on one side of
Here’s How to Blow it When Talking with Dementia Read More »