Hearing the voices of dementia : a person-centred approach

Kirstin Robertson-Gillam

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    Abstract

    The gradual decline of cognitive abilities that typify the dementing process appear to diminish one's sense of personhood. It seems that those we love gradually fade away over time, leaving behind a shell of the person we once knew and loved. Many relatives who have come to me for counselling have cried, saying, "I've lost my Mum" or "Dad doesn't know me anymore". Their loved ones develop strange behaviours: for instance, becoming paranoid about losing their handbag or having it stolen or wanting to go home when they are already home or wandering off looking for their car when they haven't driven for years. Do they really disappear? Or do they go into another time zone, another space where life is different than it was previously? After a decade of research into dementia and depression in older people, I have come to believe that our loved ones are still there and that we must find them by developing a new perspective.
    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)12-15
    Number of pages4
    JournalCAPA Quarterly
    Volume4
    Publication statusPublished - 2012

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