By Ross Colquhoun
My mother was a smart woman. She was a qualified nurse, rose to the rank of Army Major during the war years. In her fifties, when she was no longer able to play golf, she became a National Master at Contract Bridge. And, she was always a devoted and loving mother, although as I look back now, the lack of mental stimulation must have left her feeling unfulfilled. She loved the competition and was much admired for her prowess. However, that happiness turned into misery as her mind deteriorated and her wonderful memory failed her. One bridge partner after another deserted her. Some were even rude and she, in tears, was forced to quit her Bridge Club. It signaled the early stages of dementia.
While I now have academic qualifications in psychology, neuroscience and health science, I recall at the time of my mother’s illness, as a family, we struggled to understand what was happening, the extent of the burden my father carried and what we could do. What I did learn from her was that she could experience joy as well as sadness. I realized that seeing her grandchildren lifted her mood and functioning for days, despite not remembering their last visit and thinking that my daughter was her daughter. It seemed that her emotional memory remained intact and needed to be nurtured regularly.
Some years later I worked in an Aged Care Facility in the dementia ward and it was heart-breaking to find that only a few residents had regular visits from loved ones. When a visitor came, all heads would turn in the hope that it was for them. When they realized the visitor was for someone else, their heads would drop and their smiles of anticipation would fade.
Dementia will soon be the major cause of disability and death, outstripping cancer, heart disease and stroke; imposing a massive burden on families, the health systems and economies. I wrote Dementia and You: Care, Prevention and Reducing Risk to ease the burden and with the hope that others will be spared some of the confusion associated with a dementia diagnosis. My book explains what dementia is and what people can do to manage and care for their loved ones. At the same time, it is designed to be easily read and understood. I hope it benefits the lives of the many who will read it. It is a gift from my mother.
About the Author
Ross Colquhoun, D H Sc, M App Sc (Neuroscience), B Sc (Hons) researcher and author has for many years worked as a writer and editor and previously as a Clinical Neuroscientist doing assessments, writing reports and developing treatment plans for those suffering from brain injury and other neurological disorders and as a university lecturer. He has published many research articles on related subjects and the books: “Is Dementia and Bigger Word than Cancer” (2010), “Dementia and You: Care, Protection and Reducing Risk” (English edition), (2015); “Dementia and You; Care and Management” (Chinese edition), (2017); and four books of “Traditional Chinese Stories”, (2017). He has co-authored two books with Professor Wang, “A Modern Day Wonder: Stories of Poverty Alleviation in China” and “Insights and Observations on the Thirteen Confucian Classics”, which have just been published. More recently he completed writing a memoir of his many friendships, teaching and travelling to many historical and cultural sites in China, “Intimate Encounters in China”. It has just been translated into Chinese. Together with a new version of his book of 16 “Traditional Chinese Stories” these books will be published shortly.
Dementia and You is also available in Chinese.
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