How Dementia Affects Language Skills

This needs to be shown in every nursing home for awareness

I'm a psych student in my senior year and this 30 minute video taught me more about dementia than any book or class I've taken. I really appreciate your humanistic and compassionate approach. Subscribed, Liked, thank you for the knowledge.

This woman is an incredible actress. It makes her demonstrations so powerful. This is powerful information for families and carers. Thank you.

Retained On The Right: 1) Automatic Chit Chat 2) Forbidden Words (swear words, sex talk, racial slurs, ugly/mean words) 3) Rhythm of Speech (giving & getting) 4) Music, Poetry, Prayer 5) Rhythmic Movement & Dance

I wish we'd had Teepa's brilliance to guide us through when my stepfather went through the hell of dementia. One of the toughest things was getting people to stop retraumatizing him in their own frustration. The shouting at him, the child-talking, watching the pain in his eyes as he failed to find the language to respond. I'm sure many of us have been there. Teepa is a true gift to caring.

I have Early Onset Dementia and it’s too bad there is very little support out there for us. Just because we are diagnosed, doesn’t mean we all of a sudden can’t find our way out the door.

My husband was diagnosed with early onset dementia at 56...now he is almost 71 and a full time job for me. A number of years ago he said to me is "how am I supposed to remember what I forgot". It wasn't a question, but a statement. Thank you for these informative videos. I have bookmarked several of them

Oh my gosh you are so describing my household. There are days when taking care of a person with dementia becomes overwhelming and you feel like it is going to take you under too.

My sister and I are caring for my mom with dementia. She was a teacher with a master’s degree, an avid reader, a lifelong bird watcher and gardener. This disease process is so painful for we her caregivers in that she no longer recognizes common birds nor the flowers she has tended for more than 60 years. She is being robbed of her ability to enjoy reading, can’t follow tv shows, and can no longer understand how to do crosswords or jigsaws. However, it seems that from HER perspective, she doesn’t seem to remember that she used to know these things. The trick is to try and divorce our sorrow, anger and frustration from her care. We keep trying to find things she CAN do, like enjoy music, so that she has at least some quality of life.

I’m a speech pathologist, she does a great gob explaining this!

Rhythm is definitely a primary skill. As an RN I worked 2nd and 3rd at a long term skilled facility. One of my residents lost both his wife and his mind. So sad. But, he could dance. So often we would fox trot down the hallway, making him so happy . His face was glowing even with his vacancies.

Teepa you're such a gifted teacher! I've understood the science behind dementia but never seen it from the patient's perspective. I really like the point in the end about not isolating our seniors with dementia from the rest of the people because they are not socially appropriate. Dementia and the arts puts a nail on this!

This just makes me respect my grandmother more. She was a “proper” lady, until the very end. She had carers of all backgrounds and races, and the worst thing she said amounted to “oh you are wicked” which was said to me when I caught her finger trimming her nails. It must’ve hurt, and I apologised a lot, but she never hit, she never yelled in anger. We were so lucky.

She is SO, SO good at explaining in a way that people can not only understand, but also captivating the audiences attention where they ( we) want to listen and pay attention.

I lost my daughter and when I went into work those people who could not do many things came up to me and gave me love and emotional support, each in their own way.

Thank you, thank you, thank you. The training you are giving for free has, is and will be life changing for not only the caretaker but our loved one. You are giving us the tools to not only understand what is going on but the tools to respond in a loving, caring way. May you and your family be richly blessed. You are changing lives everyday!!

Teepa you are a gem of a woman, i wish people in my domain (physics) were more like you. Your passion, your obvious empathy and sympathy for those poor human beings, your pedagogy, the way you act out and go from reasercher to teacher to crazy old lady... All that in service to your most valuable skill, your expertise. You found a way to align your personality perfectly wih your line of work, admirable and impressive. Thank you

This absolutely blows my mind!! How grateful am I for this knowledge!!!

Watching this made me realise how much of this I somehow learnt during my electronic music production grad year. It’s something you wouldn’t assume would go so closely together. I thought it was only really surface level. I did some help with research and music therapy with communication through just hitting on drums in a circle with seniors with a wide range of neuro issues and I’m really glad your telling people how much these people actually still know because while the words may not be there in English. It’s still competely there in music. One of the things that’s a little off topic but was still amazing was a man I sat next to who had Parkinson’s. And the group had gone into a lead song but I watched his hand quite closely. And even though he was playing along with his normal hand, the twitching hand was playing a perfect counter rhythm. Something that’s extremely difficult to do for a normal person (do both at the same time). But he did it automatically. I asked him later if he had any control over his hand during the song and he said he didn’t. I then said what he had been doing and the amount of surprise, confidence and happiness I saw flood into him is a memory I will cherish. I assume he thought he had lost it. But learning he still had his complex skills he spent a lifetime training clearly meant a huge amount to him. After it was my time to leave the project the only thing I made sure to teach the carers was to compliment more. The media and peoples assumption, especially those going into it is they’ll lose everything. But from my studies I helped with that’s not true. And reminding them they still have a lot of abilities left can be life changing mentally. You just have to change the game. If they can only swim. Change it from walking, climbing and swimming to just swimming and then they’re just as good as anyone else.

Ahh, this was excellent!! In 2015 my then 83 year old mother had an MI. The drs were all focused on it and brushed aside the fact that she couldnt remember her birthday, address (she had lived with me for 4 years after losing her house in tornado with herself being trapped in it in 2011), that her granddaughter worked in that hospital and had for few years. After a day and half, it got better and memories came back but she lost short term memory. Fast forward to 2019, she cant hear very well,doesnt like hearing aids, has glaucoma, just had XEN implants in both eyes but still problems seeing, had TAVR in 2018, takes tramadol 4 times day for spinal stenosis/lep pain, toe problems making hard to walk, wears compression stockings for lymph edema. She still takes care of herself, does laundry, fixes food as long as it's easy stuff and plays piano. She was self taught and played in church from time young until MI. She will randomly misplace dishes because forgets where go, mixes up stories telling creating new ones that she thinks is true and will argue with adult grandson over a memory until I give her cues for the correct one. I noticed the loss of long term memory few weeks ago and as much as it was heart breaking to see my mother go from a strong independent woman to what she is now to then be robbed of these long term memories is sad. Sometimes I get frustrated, not so much at her but at the fact that this person isn't my mom. Sometimes she's a manipulator, a liar, a sneaker, just someone I take care of, take to dr appts trying to keep healthy, who no longer can have a deep conversation. Even talking about past memories, long term memories, cant get too involved. Shes 88, but still can play any hymnal you ask her to by memory, as cant see the music sheets anymore, and can change the chords to whatever you need. This is pretty much all we have left of who she is. I miss the other pieces of her too.