Dementia Café—Specials: Brain exercises, caregiver support and hope!
by Heather Gately
Welcome to the Dementia Café? How many will be joining your party today? Would it surprise you to know that you could be joined by 6.7 million other people living with Alzheimer’s or another type of dementia in America? That’s a LOT of coffee!! Double that number if you assume that every person living with dementia has a care partner joining them for a coffee- whether it be a spouse, caregiver, adult child, relative, friend or all of the above would send that 6.7 million to 26.8 million people looking for a seat at the Dementia Café! Staggering numbers which should be stopping us in our tracks, making us pause for reflection and taking action, starting a movement or calling for a revolution!! Yet, we keep driving onwards to the next café in town, one that maybe makes us feel more comfortable with its offerings.
Isn’t it a pity that the stigma of dementia prevents people from waking up and talking about it? Like cancer was 30 years ago, ‘Don’t tell the neighbors….” As if it were contagious! People used to cross the street to avoid talking about a diagnosis of cancer that most people had little or no control over! But, as the incidents of cancer rose, the evolution/revolution/movement to address it started to grow! Now we have countless charities, walks, ribbons, hospital wings dedicated to honoring the ‘brave and courageous’ people who have lived or died with cancer. Not so much with dementia! And yet today, dementia is killing more people than Prostate cancer, Breast cancer, and hypertension combined!
But let’s just pretend it’s you and your loved one at the café today! If it were you and your spouse, partner, friend or loved one…. Would you talk about the weather? Would you plan a holiday? Strategize about whether you will get a banana split or the check? Would you engage in a meaningful way or stare into your coffee allowing anxiety, worry or stress to get the better of you? Would you ponder the ‘what if’s’ of tomorrow? Unfortunately, for most, that’s the image conjured up when contemplating a life with dementia.
However, at this Dementia Café, hope of a brighter future is found on the menu! What if there was a chance to slow this disease? What if we could get support from somewhere? Support Groups and education for caregivers as well as support groups for those walking in the shoes of this illness? What if we could engage in meaningful activities, exercises, projects that sharpened our minds and gave us hope? What if we could identify our brain health strengths and strategize on how best to maximize them to the best of our abilities? What if we could surround ourselves in an environment that was tailor-made for wellness and positivity? What if we could look forward to tomorrow with enthusiasm for the adventure of living each day with intention, hope, and a determination to make the most of the time we have? Would the picture be more palatable?
What if I told you that all of the above is possible and that up to 40% of dementia cases have preventable measures that can be addressed and worked on on a daily basis to help stave off a diagnosis or improve the journey of dementia? It is all on the menu at the Memory Lane Cafe! As a sign reads on the wall: ‘This is where the fun stuff happens’ Opportunities of memory enhancement and cognitive stimulation to help fight memory loss…. strategies for brain fog, cognitive changes or decline, memory loss. An oasis of dementia support that helps individuals move beyond ‘dealing with’ someone living with dementia, where everyone is empowered to thrive despite challenges with memory. Would you run towards this solution? Would you tell your friends? All 6.7 million of them??
Let’s not get locked in the past of the sad, miserable, desperate, suffering narrative of what living with dementia looks like! Like the evolution of Cancer, let’s rally the cry of hope, determination and empowerment that we don’t have to wait for a cure, give in to despair but, RISE UP and run towards and embrace the things each one of us can do TODAY to help change the narrative and beat dementia!
Come join the movement at LIFTED! The Memory Lane Café is waiting to serve you!