Early this year just after we had moved back home after our bad flood, my wife was contacted by one of our Local Universities, to see if I was prepared to speak about Spirituality in Dementia at a conference. This is a subject, I confess is very confusing and sometimes very distressing.
I had not done a presentation for some time, and after the flood I had lost all interest, but my wife thought it would help bring me back out of the wilderness, as she so kindly put it.
So after a lot of thought, I got on with it, not really understanding what I was writing about, as my ideas, were difficult to put into words.
Then after about two weeks of writing and searching the internet for the right definition, or at least one I could understand with my brain these days I got started.
It took me the best part of three weeks to do it, and then get it edited by "my boss the wife" simply because these days, when writing things like that I miss out many words and in some cases put extra words in, without knowing why I have done it. My spelling has also gone, so even spell checker struggles at times.
I have been told that its because my brain is trying to go faster than I can type, but its still distressing.
The event came and I got into the stage thinking it was going to go one of two ways, either good or disaster.
I went out before the key note speaker at the event and was struck by the silence. Then the key note speaker a High Profile Clergy Man got up and said, sorry I cannot follow something like that. He has said everything I wanted and could have possibly said.
I was to be honest totally shocked at this resonse, and it took time before I realised just waht was going on.
When I originally started writing, I had thought spirituality was all about religion, when in fact it was about our life styles, our wishes, our past, in fact our life story.
Thank goodness I got the information right in my mind, before that event otherwise I woud have been left looking silly.
However I have learnt so much about this topic since that event, and its helped me to help others understand what we require.
Through that little push from my wife I got back on the ladder, and feel much better in myself, although my memory has slipped quite a bit since last year and my concentration these days is very hit and miss
Thank goodness for all of the strong minded ladies, who stand behind us and push when we desperately need it
I have now been asked to return again to cover the same subject, only now as the key note speaker, something I have never done it my life, and in many ways is terrifying.
So I am hoping that I can do justice to all who have dementia and their loving carers.
I had not done a presentation for some time, and after the flood I had lost all interest, but my wife thought it would help bring me back out of the wilderness, as she so kindly put it.
So after a lot of thought, I got on with it, not really understanding what I was writing about, as my ideas, were difficult to put into words.
Then after about two weeks of writing and searching the internet for the right definition, or at least one I could understand with my brain these days I got started.
It took me the best part of three weeks to do it, and then get it edited by "my boss the wife" simply because these days, when writing things like that I miss out many words and in some cases put extra words in, without knowing why I have done it. My spelling has also gone, so even spell checker struggles at times.
I have been told that its because my brain is trying to go faster than I can type, but its still distressing.
The event came and I got into the stage thinking it was going to go one of two ways, either good or disaster.
I went out before the key note speaker at the event and was struck by the silence. Then the key note speaker a High Profile Clergy Man got up and said, sorry I cannot follow something like that. He has said everything I wanted and could have possibly said.
I was to be honest totally shocked at this resonse, and it took time before I realised just waht was going on.
When I originally started writing, I had thought spirituality was all about religion, when in fact it was about our life styles, our wishes, our past, in fact our life story.
Thank goodness I got the information right in my mind, before that event otherwise I woud have been left looking silly.
However I have learnt so much about this topic since that event, and its helped me to help others understand what we require.
Through that little push from my wife I got back on the ladder, and feel much better in myself, although my memory has slipped quite a bit since last year and my concentration these days is very hit and miss
Thank goodness for all of the strong minded ladies, who stand behind us and push when we desperately need it
I have now been asked to return again to cover the same subject, only now as the key note speaker, something I have never done it my life, and in many ways is terrifying.
So I am hoping that I can do justice to all who have dementia and their loving carers.