plum tree buds | the DAWN Method

What is it like to have dementia?

Manifesto for Dementia with Dignity  This is a manifesto for my book, Dementia With Dignity. It explains what it is like to experience dementia. It’s important that we keep in mind that dementia is a condition, one that is progressive and that we cannot cure with medications. Please take some time to consider each statement … Read more

yellow and red striped tulips with dew | the DAWN Method

Autonomy and Dementia

Supporting a Sense of Self in Dementia Unless we balance our loved one experiencing dementia’s need for autonomy and dignity with their need for safety, we cannot help them preserve a sense of self. In his book Being Mortal, Atul Gawande points out that in this country we seem to confuse prolonging life with preserving … Read more

snow bank in the trees | the DAWN Method

Keep Me Safe, But Let Me be Me

Transitions from one life stage to another are always complicated. As teenagers become adults, their parents maintain a delicate balance between continued supervision and granting increasing responsibility. The process is rarely smooth. It goes in fits and starts, with spectacular failures interspersed with glowing successes. And it’s the same with the appearance of dementia. How … Read more