Ronda’s Comments (group member since Jun 16, 2015)

Ronda’s comments from the Understanding Parents with Dementia group.

Win 1 of 2 AUTOGRAPHED copies of 'Creating Joy & Meaning for the Dementia Patient'. Yes, feelings of joy are possible for the dementia patient! This fresh and innovative approach to caregiving explains how to create an atmosphere of joy and peace for both you and the patient. Learn how to remain connected to your loved one for as long as possible by helping them experience the simple joys of everyday life.

Yes, joy is possible even in the midst of dementia's thick fog. When I mother-in-law was diagnosed with dementia 10 years ago, I began an incredible journey filled with heartbreak and incredible joy. I worked hard to find ways create an environment of mutual joy and contentment. I believe my approach is fresh and inspirational, and recounts a personal journey, filled with relatable experiences and that other caregivers will find uplifting and brimming with hope. But most importantly, I show the reader how to honor the unique individual that still resides deep inside every dementia patient by offering techniques enabling them to continue to experience the simple joys of everyday life. RECIVED HONORABLE MENTION AT THE NEW YORK BOOK FESTIVAL.

Creating Joy & Meaning for the Dementia Patient: A Caregiver's Guide to Connection and Hope: MIDWEST BOOK REVIEW:
Creating Joy & Meaning for the Dementia Patient offers a positive new approach to handling dementia patients and stems from the author's ten years of experience. It's designed to help fellow caregivers understand the stages of dementia and how to create connections and positive experiences through them all.

This guide is highly recommended for caregivers and professionals who deal with dementia and Alzheimer's patients on a daily basis. Where other guides may talk about communication and management, this book reaches beyond these subjects and addresses the fundamentals of life - joy and meaning - and emphasizes patient individuality; not a 'one size fits all' program.

Chapters empower caregivers by exploring their key roles in defining and imparting this sense of meaning and joy in everyday interactions, and they outline the types of experiences that lend to not just better understanding, but alternative ways of interaction that achieve better, more positive results for everyone.

In many ways Creating Joy & Meaning for the Dementia Patient fills in the gaps created by similar-sounding books by discussing the complications of memory changes and the psychological reactions of patients and caregivers during the process. Each chapter concludes with tangible insights, communication tips that emphasize flexibility and understanding, and approaches that lend dignity and joy into every encounter.

Compelling and satisfyingly specific, Creating Joy & Meaning for the Dementia Patient offers what few others have achieved: a sense of renewed purpose and concrete approaches that go beyond 'handling' and move into areas of positive experiences for all involved.

*D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

Based on 10 years of caregiving experience, my book 'Creating Joy & Meaning for the Dementia Patient' was released last month by Rowman & Littlefield. It won Honorable Mention at the New York Book Festival and has been listed as a #1 New Release on Amazon. It offers a positive approach to dementia care and teaches the caregiver how to create a life of joy of peace for themselves and their loved one. I hope that you will check it out.