POEMS ON DEMENTIA/ ALZHEIMER’S

Poems on Dementia/Alzheimer’s is written in honor of World Alzheimer’s Day. This day is observed on 21 September to raise awareness among people through out the world about the challenges that are faced by the patients due to dementia/Alzheimer’s. I also want to contribute something to make people aware about this dreaded disease. For this, I have written 4 poems, collected Quotations on Dementia and Alzheimer’s. They are placed before you for better understanding.

Now, let us increase our knowledge on Alzheimer’s….

• Alzheimer’s is the most common cause of dementia. Dementia is a general term for loss of memory, problem-solving, language and other thinking abilities. These problems become so severe that it interferes with daily life.
• Alois Alzheimer, a German psychiatrist was the first to identify the disease while treating a German woman in 1901.This disease was named after him.
• Alzheimer’s is responsible for 60% to 80% of dementia cases.
• The condition in the disease is such that it is regarded as a family disease due to the impact it has on those closest to the victim.

Before, we read the poem and quotations, let us know something about the following for better clarity from the knowledge and information taken from internet….

• What is Alzheimer’s disease?
• What are the main causes of Alzheimer’s?
• What is Dementia disease?

Let us know one by one….

WHAT IS ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE?

Alzheimer’s disease ( also called as – senile dementia ) is a brain disorder that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills and ultimately, the ability to carry out the simple tasks.

It is a progressive disease that destroys memory and other important mental functions.

Brain cell connections and the cells themselves degenerate and die, eventually destroying memory and other important mental functions.

Memory loss and confusion are the main symptoms. No cure exists, but medication and management strategies may temporarily improve symptoms.

WHAT ARE THE MAIN CAUSES OF ALZHEIMER’S?

The main causes probably include a combination of age – related changes in the brain, along with genetic, environmental and life style factors. The importance of any of these factors in increasing or decreasing the risk of Alzheimer’s disease may differ from person to person.

WHAT IS DEMENTIA DISEASE?

Dementia is a term used to describe a group of symptoms affecting memory, thinking and social abilities severely enough to interfere with your daily life. It isn’t a specific disease, but several diseases can cause dementia.

It is not a specific disease, dementia is a group of conditions characterized by impairment of at least two brain functions, such as memory loss and judgement.

Symptoms include forgetfulness, limited social skills and thinking abilities so impaired that it interferes with daily functioning.

Medication and therapies may help manage symptoms. Some cases are reversible.

Now,let us read 4 Poems with the following titles….

• Poem-1- We Need Carers
• Poem-2- You Should Note Please….
• Poem-3- Our Mind Cannot Mind
• Poem-4- Death Before Death

Now, let us read one by one…..

POEM-1

WE NEED CARERS

We can call dementia/Alzheimer’s

A disease that damages brain

We don’t have medicine

We need carers who are trained.

POEM-2

YOU SHOULD NOTE PLEASE….

Don’t take dementia/Alzheimer’s lightly

It’s more dangerous than cancer and heart disease

Dementia/Alzheimer’s is a lonely disease

The diseased/victim suffers lonely

The relatives also suffer badly

No way out….

There is no conversation, no togetherness, no sharing

It’s very painful

You should note please….

You should take care of the victim please….

POEM-3

OUR MIND CAN NOT MIND

Life becomes empty, life become lifeless

Dementia/Alzheimer’s attacks the mind not the body

Our mind can not mind

What we are doing or not doing

We lose our power to be conscious

We lose our past, present and future

So dreaded is dementia/Alzheimer’s

Our mind can not find what we are suffering from!

POEM-4

DEATH BEFORE DEATH

Dementia/ Alzheimer’s is like death before death

What a tragedy!

What a bad luck!

The diseased is unknown about his disease

The disease is not felt by the diseased

So sad, so painful

It’s a prolonged untimely, ugly and early death.

What to do?

You can do nothing….

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia

It brings pain

It brings hell to the carers, relatives and dear ones.

Dementia/Alzheimer’s is like death before death

The diseased can not express

Can not help himself

Can not do the things, which he was able to do

Just becomes helpless like a small child.

Dementia/Alzheimer’s is like death before death

Dementia is a syndrome

Either a chronic or progressive in nature

Brings unwanted pain

May be unknown, without any feelings seen in the face of the diseased

A reaction-less, memory-less brain he has

A blank face he possess

Gives pain, immense pain to the relatives and dear ones

Day in and day out pain continues again and again.

Dementia/Alzheimer’s is like death before death

Alas! the ability to process thought decreases

It affects memory, thinking, orientation and comprehension

It affects calculation, learning capacity, language and judgement

Tell me…

What is left to call oneself a human being?

Dementia/Alzheimer’s is like death before death

Dementia/Alzheimer’s has physical, psychological, social and economic impact

The disability, dependency of older people is higher

Some families are able to take care

But,so sad, so painful

Many old people die without getting proper care.

Dementia/Alzheimer’s is like death before death

The older people suffer

The reason is ageing

It is surprising! But true

There are nearly 10 million new cases every year

We can not do much

We don’t have specific medicine dear

Only we can show is lot of love affection

We can show empathy and take full care.

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Let us read few Dementia Quotes to understand Dementia, then we will read Alzheimer’s Quotes too….

DEMENTIA QUOTES

QUOTE -1 – Dementia is our most – feared illness, more than heart disease or cancer. …. DAVID PERLMUTTER

QUOTE – 2 – None of us wants to be reminded that dementia is random, relentless, and frighteningly common. …. LAURIE GRAHAM

QUOTE – 3 – That’s the thing with dementia. If you’re with somebody who has a serious illness, you can usually talk to them, have a laugh every now and then – the person is still with you. With dementia, there’s no conversation; there’s no togetherness, no sharing. …. JUDY PARFITT

QUOTE – 4 – Those with dementia are still people and they still have stories and they still have character and they’re all individuals and they’re all unique. And they just need to be interacted with on a human level. …. CAREY MULLIGAN

QUOTE – 5 – My dementia hasn’t just affected me – it’s affected my friends and family, too. …. GARRY ANDERSON

QUOTE – 6 – We can alleviate physical pain, but mental pain – grief, despair, depression, dementia – is less accessible to treatment. It’s connected to who we are – our personality, our character, our soul, if you like. …. RICHARD EYRE

QUOTE – 7 – That’s the worst thing about dementia: it gets you every time.Sufferers look and act the same but beneath the familiar exterior something quite different is going on. They’re in another world and you can not enter. …. CAROL THATCHER

QUOTE – 8 – You don’t just wake up one day with dementia or Alzheimer’s, these conditions are developmental. Even when a problem triggers the need to collect data, it’s reviewed by a specialist and filed away. There’s no central repository allowing information to be shared across a multitude of researchers world wide. …. TAN LE

QUOTE – 9 – My mother watched her loving husband look at her with blankness or contempt and sometimes hatred. And yet dementia is classed as a social condition, so that the state is not required to pay for long – term residential care. Calling it what it is – brain damage is too expensive. …. ROSE GEORGE

QUOTE – 10 – My husband is leaving me. No dramas, no slammed doors – well, OK, a few slammed doors – and no suitcase in the hall, but there is another woman involved. Her name is Dementia. …. LAURIE GRAHAM

QUOTE – 11 – While no one can change the outcome of dementia or Alzheimer’s, with the right support you can change the journey. …. TERA REED

QUOTE – 12 – Dementia is, after all, a symptom of organic brain damage. It is a condition, a disorder of the central nervous system,brought about in my case by a viral assault on brain tissue. When the assault wiped out certain intellectual processes, it also affected emotional processes. …. FLOYD SKLOOT

QUOTE – 13 – Dementia is not exclusively a problem of the developed world. …. JULIE BISHOP

QUOTE – 14 – Dementia care isn’t easy. Caring for a person living with Alzheimer’s or a related dementia is difficult. In fact, caring is one of the most difficult undertakings that anyone could ever imagine. …. BOB DE MARCO

QUOTE – 15 – Dementia is often regarded as an embarrassing condition that should be hushed up and not spoken about. …. KEVIN WHATELY

ALZHEIMER’S QUOTES

QUOTE – 16 – Alzheimer’s…. it is a barren disease, as empty and lifeless as a desert. It is a thief of hearts and souls and memories. …. NICHOLAS SPARKS

QUOTE – 17 – Alzheimer’s disease locks all the doors and exits. There is no reprieve, no escape. …. PATTI DAVIS

QUOTE – 18 – Alzheimer’s disease is death before death, and I’m terrified of it. …. JOEY COMEAU

QUOTE – 19 – People do not realize that Alzheimer’s is not old age. It is a progressive and fatal disease, and staggering amounts of people develop Alzheimer’s every day. …. MELINA KANAKARDES

QUOTE – 20 – Suffering is always hard to quantify – especially when the pain is caused by as cruel a disease as Alzheimer’s. Most illness attack the body; Alzheimer’s destroys the mind – and in the process, annihilates the very self. …. JEFFREY KLUGER

QUOTES – 21 – I’m in awe of people out there who deal with Alzheimer’s, because they have to deal with death 10 times over, year after year. …. MARCIA WALLACE

QUOTE – 22 – Body and mind, like man and wife, do not always agree to die together. …. CHARLES CALEB COLTON

QUOTE – 23 – It seems that when you have cancer you are a brave battler against the disease, but when when you have Alzheimer’s you are an old fart. That’s how people see you. It makes you feel quite alone. …. TERRY PRATCHETT

QUOTE – 24 – Alzheimer’s is a devastating disease. It was painful for me and my family to to watch my grandfather deteriorate. We must find a cure for this horrible disease. …. DAVID HYDE PIERCE

QUOTE – 25 – These disorders – schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s, depression, addiction – they not only steal our time to live, they change who we are. …. EDWARD BOYDEN

QUOTE – 26 – The Alzheimer’s Association is what I am passionate about. My grand father had it. My mom has it. It’s a horrible disease, and with ageing population, it’s a growing problem. It’s terrible to lose your brain and your power to be conscious or in the moment. …. GRAHAM SHIELS

QUOTE – 27 – I know three people who have got better after a brain tumour. I haven’t heard of anyone who’s got better from Alzheimer’s. …. TERRY PRATCHETT

QUOTE – 28 – The great tragedy of Alzheimer’s disease, and the reason why we dread it, is that it leaves us with no defence, not even against those who love us. …. P.D. JAMES

QUOTE – 29 – Alzheimer’s caregivers are heroes. …. LEEZA GIBBONS

QUOTE – 30 – I loved my husband very much, and it was heartbreaking to have him develop Alzheimer’s disease, and to stand by and watch him decline in his ability to take care of himself. …. SANDRA DAY O’CONNOR

QUOTE – 31 – We believe communicating effectively with someone with Alzheimer’s is not just about using language, it is connecting through their senses such as touch, visual cues and sound. …. PETER ROSS, CEO & co-founder of Senior Helpers

QUOTE – 32 – Please remember the real me when I cannot remember you. …. JULIE WHITE

QUOTE – 33 – Be kind for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. …. SOCRATES

QUOTE – 34 – Our value lies in what we are and what we have been, not in our ability to recite the recent past. …. HOMER

QUOTE – 35 – If you want to avoid Alzheimer’s disease, sleep eight hours a night. …. DEEPAK CHOPRA

QUOTE – 36 – My mum was a wonderful mother. She died, aged 80, of Alzheimer’s disease which was dreadful to watch. I remember she said to me, ‘Believe in yourself because no one else is going to do it for you.’ I’m sure a lot of my success is due to her words of advice. …. BONNIE TYLER

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CONCLUSION:-

• In conclusion, it can be said that with increase of age and above 60 years, there is every possibilities to suffer from dementia. This has become common for elder people.
• About one third of all people aged 85 or older may have some form of dementia. But it is not a normal part of aging.
• There are also many people live into their 90s and beyond without much problem and any sign of dementia.
• ( One can help himself in reducing the risk of dementia by taking care of the following….)
• Eating a healthy, balanced diet
• Exercising regularly
• Maintaining a healthy weight
• Quit/Stop smoking
• Keeping alcohol within recommended limit.
• Sleeping 8 hours in the night.

Hope, this post has added some knowledge and information on one of the most dreaded disease. Please give your valuable comments and suggestions.

******RatikantaSingh******

ALSO PLEASE READ….

• POEMS ON DETERMINATION WITH STORY AND QUOTATIONS
• POEMS ON PRIORITY WITH QUOTATIONS AND SHORT STORY
• THREE SHORT MOTIVATIONAL STORIES ON BELIEF
• SHORT MOTIVATIONAL STORY ON SELF – ASSESSMENT
• POEMS ON INTERNATIONAL NURSES DAY

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