Alzheimer’s Patients Still Have “Sense of Self”
A very interesting article appears at The Tangled Neuron, Does Memory Loss Mean Loss of Self?. Here we encounter the story of Don Moyer and his wife Jenny Knauss who dispute the fact that the Alzheimer’s patient loses the complete loss of self. They go on to show that person has usefulness and value. (Jenny has Alzheimer’s.) Don and Jenny operate a social networking site, Alzheimer’s Spoken Here, for people with Alzheimer’s and related diseases and are writing a paper, with Renee Beard of the University of Illinois at Chicago, on this topic.
It also bears out what I discovered with Mother and Auntie…even though they seemed to have entered a different world, we could bring them enjoyment and enjoy them. With adjustments, as we all faced this disease we couldn’t control, we could still help them find value in themselves and in life.
I found this article at The Tangled Neuron a most enlightening and encouraging one. I particularly like one of their conclusions: “See dementia as a beginning rather than as an end.”
I finally I had to look at Mother’s life that way as I helped her through her Alzheimer’s journey.
(To learn more, you’ll want to read the post at The Tangled Neuron and see the photo.)
Tags: Alzheimers, Alzheimers+Disease, memory+loss, tangled+neuronRelated Stories
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2 opinions for Alzheimer’s Patients Still Have “Sense of Self”
Goji Juice Guy
Nov 11, 2007 at 4:00 pm
That’s a very good article, I enjoyed reading it. I don’t believe that a person suffering from memory loss loses their sense of self - they still enjoy the same things, they have their own unique personality, and I’ve never met an Alzheimer patient who had lost their own personal sense of humor!
Mary Emma Allen
Nov 12, 2007 at 10:44 pm
Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts and observations. A sense of humor helps both Alzheimer’s patient and caregiver. I recall my mom remarking, after we chuckled about something she had done, “We don’t laugh enough, do we?” I realized she still had her sense of humor and needed that in her life.
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