I want to say first off that I hear and see how hard it is, both the impact of caring and of watching the effects of dementia 'overtake' (very aptly put @Former-Member 😊) a loved one over time. There's helplessness and hopelessness as well as a sense of grief about the loss of the person your loved one has been. It sucks. These are such heavy and challenging emotions to have to sit with and carry. My hope for this space is that those of you supporting or caring someone living with dementia or otherwise affected by dementia may find a sense of connection here and the invaluable 'yep, I really feel you' that can come from shared experiences.
Thank you so much to everyone who has contributed so far for being so open in sharing your experiences and supporting each other. 😊
@BlueBay, I wanted to thank you for the great testimonial about Dementia Australia. It is great to hear you and your hubby have found them to be so helpful! For anyone else who may be interested, you can find more information about Dementia Australia here.
@Shaz51, thank you also for sharing that wonderful image about what not to say. I find it a little sad that it's been necessary for someone to actually write these down as explicit 'what not to say'... I especially like the last point about 'when you assume' though. That's something I learnt as a spelling rule early on and it's stuck with me ever since. Also, to my way of thinking, dementia (or any diagnosis for that matter) will look different on everyone. It's just as unique as the individual, as a few of you have highlighted.
