The early days of Alzheimer’s
My journey with dementia began when I was 11 years old and my Uncle Bob had Alzheimer’s (back then called ”senility”). At the time, I didn’t know what that meant. But I knew we just accepted Uncle Bob no matter what “strange” things he did. My grandmother (his sister) cared for him and her struggles I did recognize.
35 years of passion
I wasn’t sure I wanted to work with seniors when I took the job as a social worker in one of the first specialized dementia units in the state. But being a recent social work graduate, I needed a job. I walked into the nursing home on the first day thinking I made a big mistake. But then I met Jenny. She was the first resident who greeted me when I walked into the unit. After 10 minutes of listening and reassuring her, I knew that this was where my passion was. And I knew that I made the best decision of my career. Over the next 3 decades, I have worked for a variety of companies, all with a focus on memory care. No matter where I worked, my goal was to make this journey the easiest it could be for all involved. Creating programs, supporting families, educating professionals and solving problems has been the focus. During those years, I assisted many families along the way. And everyone seemed to face so many of the same challenges: Not understanding the healthcare system, not knowing about different resources, unsure of how to deal with some of the behaviors, and of course their own emotions of guilt, anger and denial. After 35 years, it was time to set up my own consulting to share my passion and knowledge with others outside of the corporate world. The brainchild “Empowermentia” was created.
Then it became personal
After working in the field of memory care for over 25 years, my story took a left turn. In 2015, Dad started to show some cognitive changes. He had trouble understanding the scoring of a football game, was having a hard time figuring out the tip at restaurants, and most concerning, to dad anyways, was he couldn’t solve the Wheel of Fortune puzzles as quickly. After a thorough assessment, our biggest fears were confirmed, although we were not surprised. But when you hear the diagnosis, your world stops for a moment. During dad’s journey, we were able to tap into the many professionals and resources we had at our disposal. I called in a lot of favors. And even with all the knowledge and people in our corner, it was still a rough road. This journey also showed me how much need there is for training and education on the disease, the impacts on the families and creative interventions. Our family often says that we were blessed that the journey was only 5 years. In 2020, dad passed away holding my mom’s hand.
