SH*TTY STUFF THAT HAPPENS
DEMENTIA
“we don’t know what’s coming”: anthony hopkins plays “the father” with dementia (npr)
“Writer and director Florian Zeller was very close to his grandmother. ‘She was like my mother in a way,’ he says. ‘She was very important in my life.’ But when Zeller was 15, his grandmother started to experience dementia. It was ‘a painful process ... to suddenly be impotent,’ he says. ‘You know, you can love someone and you discover that love is not enough.’ Zeller drew on this personal experience in his 2012 play Le Père. The new film The Father is based on that play, and unfolds from the perspective of Anthony, who has dementia.”
the new yorker: anthony hopkins rules the screen in “the father” (article)
new york times: ‘the father’ review: a capricious mind (review)
mayo clinic: dementia overview (article)
“Dementia describes a group of symptoms affecting memory, thinking and social abilities severely enough to interfere with your daily life. It isn't a specific disease, but several different diseases may cause dementia. Though dementia generally involves memory loss, memory loss has different causes. Having memory loss alone doesn't mean you have dementia. Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of a progressive dementia in older adults, but there are a number of causes of dementia. Depending on the cause, some dementia symptoms may be reversible.”
I am proud to call fellow writer Robyn Passow Fisher a friend. She is someone who knows intimately the pilgrimage that is caretaking a spouse through dementia, and the all-encompassing process that is rebuilding after they are gone. Anyone seeking the empathy of a fellow traveler on this tragic and moving journey should experience her site, and be aware of the book she has written and is working to put out into the world.
Yours truly, Irreverent Rachel
you remind me who i am: a memoir of true love and lewy body dementia (manuscript)
“Part raw, intimate caregiving journal, often told with humor, and part chronicle of a common but misunderstood, and often misdiagnosed, neurological disease, Lewy Body Dementia. At its very core, it is a compelling 20-year love story, where deep connection and tenderness are the guides through the changes and the trauma of knowing that the most beautiful of partnerships is ending.”
how my dad’s dementia changed my idea of death (and life) (TED talk)
“With warmth and grace, Beth Malone tells the deeply personal story of her dad's struggle with frontotemporal lobe dementia, and how it changed how she thinks about death (and life). A moving talk about a daughter's love — and of letting go and finding peace.”
mettle health: living with alzheimer’s or other kinds of dementia (video)
“Dementia is a difficult topic for both patients and caregivers; there are multiple loses over time, meaning everyone involved needs to adapt again and again. We discuss living in the moment, what you can say no to when it comes to treatment for someone living with dementia, as well as being mindful of projections.”
ALZHEIMER'S
brené brown: the problem of alzheimer’s (podcast)
“This week, I have a tough, loving conversation about dementia and Alzheimer’s with Jason Karlawish, physician, researcher, professor, clinician, and author of The Problem of Alzheimer’s: How Science, Culture, and Politics Turned a Rare Disease into a Crisis and What We Can Do About It. This heartbreakingly common diagnosis creates multiple patients—both the diagnosed and the caregivers. We talk about the difference between Alzheimer’s and dementia, how we respond to a disease that diminishes our autonomy, and what we can do to take care of ourselves and each other.”
hfc: bringing light to alzheimer’s (site)
“HFC is a nonprofit movement, led by Seth Rogen and Lauren Miller Rogen, whose mission is to care for families facing this disease, educate young people about living a brain-healthy life, and activate the next generation of Alzheimer’s advocates.”
the fight against alzheimer’s and dementia (TED talks)
Alzheimer’s and dementia are a heart-breaking reality for millions across the world. Find out what inventors and scientists on the cutting edge of medical research are doing to combat this neurological puzzle.
alzheimer’s researchers go back to basics to find the best way forward (npr)
“The project, with its emphasis on basic research, represents part of a global do-over for the Alzheimer's field, which has weathered a series of failed attempts to develop a drug that could slow or stop the disease. ‘The premise of this project here is that we need to take a step back,’ says Ed Lein, a senior scientist at the Allen Institute and the center's lead investigator.”
the forgetting (podcast)
“The Forgetting is a podcast that talks about and demystifies Alzheimer's disease. The twice-monthly show is co-hosted by two well-respected Alzheimer's experts: David Shenk author of The Forgetting: Alzheimer's, Portrait of an Epidemic and Greg O'Brien, author of On Pluto: Inside the Mind of Alzheimer's. O'Brien was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's disease in 2009, at age 59. The podcast highlights the friendship Shenk and O'Brien share, while also documenting O'Brien's experience with the disease as its symptoms become more pronounced.”
glen campbell: i’ll be me (documentary)
“This film documents Glen’s amazing ‘Goodbye Tour’ as he and his family attempt to navigate the wildly unpredictable nature of his progressing Alzheimer’s disease using love, laughter, and music as their medicine of choice.”
gentle on my mind: in sickness and in health with glen campbell (book)
“The page-turning, never-before-told story of Kim Campbell's roller-coaster thirty-four-year marriage to music legend Glen Campbell, including how Kim helped Glen finally conquer his addictions only to face their greatest challenge when he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.”
careliving.org: your companion and guide through the journey of caregiving (site)
“Determined to continue her husband Glen’s quest to educate the world about Alzheimer’s Disease, Kim Campbell made it her personal mission to improve the quality of life for people with dementia and their caregivers. In August of 2016, she launched CareLiving, a blog, lifestyle guide, and social movement designed to inspire, encourage, and empower caregivers to care for themselves while caring for others.”