In the midst of this pandemic, I feel inadequate. I have nothing to offer you. Except my apologies. If you have COVID-19, I am so sorry. If you suspect your have COVID-19 but can’t get a test, I am so sorry. If you love someone who has COVID-19, I am so sorry. If one of […]
Category: dementia
Special Guest Blog: COVID-19 and Dementia
Today’s special guest blogger has more expertise on the subject than I do–he is living with dementia. Emphasis on “living.” Thanks, Roger, for sharing this and for reminding us of the potential that people living with dementia have to continue living meaningful lives and making a difference. —Elaine Coronavirus and Dementia How I […]
The Northern Iowa Gerontology Nursing Home Art Box Project!
Exciting news! Yesterday we launched the Northern Iowa Gerontology Nursing Home Art Box Project to send art supplies to nursing home residents who are isolated due to COVID-19. I have some funding to buy supplies due to a generous gift from the Adele Whitenack Davis family. However, some people have asked how to contribute. And […]
Nursing Homes and the Coronavirus
Does anyone else wake up every morning and think they’ve had a nightmare based on some odd sci fi movie they once saw…and then realize it’s real? I don’t know where to begin. First of all, I’m not in nursing homes, memory care centers, or adult day centers lately. I’m a gerontologist who is avoiding […]
This Ain’t Just About Memory: Dementia and the Senses (Part 5: Touch)
This is the fifth of a series of five posts about the senses and dementia. Today we focus on touch. The issue of touch, or tactile stimulation, for those with dementia is complex. An entire book could be written on the topic, and I will be clear that this post is not a complete summary […]
This Ain’t Just About Memory Loss: Dementia and Senses (Part 4: Taste)
This is the fourth in a series of post about dementia and the senses. Some of the following content is adapted from a 2016 blog post that I wrote. Today we address taste. We use our taste buds to taste four flavors: salty, sweet, bitter, and sour. (There is some controversy about whether there is […]
This Ain’t Just About Memory Loss: Dementia and Senses (Part 3: Smell)
This is the third in a series on dementia and the senses. Today we discuss smell. (This is an adaptation of a post originally wrote a few years ago.) As I write this, it’s a gorgeous early fall day. I am sitting in our living room with the windows open. College football is on TV. There […]
This Ain’t Just About Memory: Dementia and the Senses (Part 2: Sight)
As you might now, I am currently focusing my blog posts on symptoms of dementia other than memory decline. This is the second in a series about how dementia might impact sensation and perception. Today we focus on sight. (And, if some of this seems familiar to you, I’d like to thank you for being […]
This Ain’t Just About Memory: Dementia and the Senses (Part 1: Hearing)
I’ve been writing posts that highlight non-memory symptoms of dementia. Over the next five weeks, I will discussing sensation and perception. Five weeks, five senses, right? We will talk about how dementia impacts how a person experiences the world. Today we will focus on hearing. If some of this is familiar, it’s adapted from a […]
This Ain’t Just About Memory: Dementia and Impulse Control
To function as a member of society, it’s necessary to have the ability to sometimes stop yourself from doing what you really want to do. You had an urge to call your co-worker a jerk, but you stopped yourself. (If you work with me at the university, this is totally hypothetical. It’s not like I’ve […]
