Key Research- Joanne.
- healthandwellbeing2020
- Feb 12, 2020
- 1 min read
I went to this exhibition at the People’s History Musuem (now sadly finished) - it was a mixture of poetry, stories and drawings (some of which had been presented as banners). It sought to reach out, communicate the experience of dementia and inject some joy and positivity into the narrative. The exhibition was part of a wider initiative led by the University of Exeter (link http://www.idealproject.org.uk/projects/almo/). Dementia can be perplexing, confusing and sad, but of course the elements of the person - what makes themthem- can stay the same.
As someone who has struggled with my mental health I have a great deal of sympathy with people living with dementia. Like dementia, there is much talk about removing the stigma and being more open about mental health problems - and precious little attempt to listen to the stories of those whose experience is active. I think that it’s important to respect the people behind the labels and their stories.
I was also interested in an app the Alzheimers society put together - it’s best used as part of a VR experience but can work on a phone. (link https://www.alzheimersresearchuk.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/The-Lived-Experience-of-Dementia-workbook.pdf). Again it offers an opportunity to understand the lived experience of dementia.
Other links-
https://www.beingpatient.com/an-academics-first-person-perspective-on-living-with-dementia/— first person account of struggling with dementia.
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/d523/6864807336c6f4c23b70f28f7d88557e1501.pdf— scholarly article on the experience of living with dementia that attempts to unpack the real consequences for the person and the public negative perceptions
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0214724- scholarly article on the experience of living with dementia - particularly living with the gaze of others.
https://www.alzheimersresearchuk.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/The-Lived-Experience-of-Dementia-workbook.pdf including a VR app.
A life more ordinary http://www.idealproject.org.uk/projects/almo/
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