Cognitive Impairment/Dementia Neuro Note #1

Cognitive Impairment/Dementia 

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    I watched Beth Malone's Ted Talk, "How my dad's dementia changed my idea of death (and life)." In this emotional Ted Talk, Beth talks about how her father was diagnosed with Frontotemporal Lobe dementia, the ways it changed their lives, and a realization after years of watching her father go through this. 

    Dementia is a very broad term and is commonly caused from Alzheimer's disease. There are different types of dementia and they all affect the brain and body the same yet so differently. After watching her Ted Talk, I dug deeper into what Frontotemporal lobe dementia was and how it can affect someone who is diagnosed with this. Frontotemporal dementia is what it sounds like, it is damage to the neurons in the frontal and temporal lobes. As a result, it can cause someone to act out, cause emotional problems, and sometimes difficulty communicating, working, and walking. Beth's father was kicked out of the first nursing home he was placed in for violent behavior. He threatened them with the cutlery knives in the kitchen, threw plants out the windows, and pulled the older ladies out of their wheelchairs. The call was a shock because this type of behavior was foreign to them, but he could not control these impulses due to the dementia. He was then placed in various types of nursing homes when they found a home that was specifically for people with dementia. For a while, she lost sight of who her father was before the dementia and how to have a normal daughter-father relationship with him. She talks about walking into his room one day to visit and he's hunched over, pulling at his clothes and she does not speak to him she leaves to call her sister and just cries. She told her sister she wanted to kill her father. Now, she was not actually going to kill him, but the thought of seeing her father suffer was heavy on her. After the phone call, she returns to see him. He has calmed down, laughed, and greeted her by name. At that moment, she realized she was not seeing her father for him, but his diagnosis. From then on out, she started thinking of ways to re-develop their relationship and not focus on his diagnosis. 

    I chose this experience because I watched dementia slowly kill my grandmother. My grandmother was a sweet soul and sometimes the dementia (especially at the late stages) got the best of her. My grandad has Parkinson's and they would not be surprised if he had a touch of dementia as well. I was hoping that watching this video would give me a different view on how to continue normalcy within my relationship with my grandfather. I am a firm believer that keeping a normal structure prior to the diagnosis helps with the confusion and anger that comes along with a diagnosis like this. People who have never experienced or watched a close family member go through the effects of dementia never fully understand when you speak on it, and it is comforting to know that we all have similar thoughts and that it is okay. In relation to the course content, we learned when someone has damage to the frontal lobe it can cause erratic behavior, prude comments, and ultimately the person has no control over their behaviors and normally they do not realize what they are doing is wrong. It makes sense why someone with Frontotemporal dementia would develop bad behavior or become a 'different' person. I think anyone learning about Dementia and neuro aspects should watch and/or read first hand experiences to relate what they learned and have a deeper understanding and empathy for that person. 

References 

Malone, B. (2017, November). How my dad's dementia changed my idea of death (and life). TedTalk. https://www.ted.com/talks/beth_malone_how_my_dad_s_dementia_changed_my_idea_of_death_and_life

What are frontotemporal Disorders? Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment. National Institute on Aging. (2021, July 31).https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/what-are-frontotemporal-disorders#:~:text=Frontotemporal%20disorders%20(FTD)%2C%20sometimes,work%2C%20or%20difficulty%20with%20walking.