Care that brings deep change

A dementia sufferer called Christine Bryden has been chronicling her passage through the disease since 1995 in Dementia From an Insider's Perspective. The Christian former pharmaceutical worker describes her experience as "a spiritual journey towards the divine" and has said: "I believe I am much more than just my brain structure and function, which is declining daily. My creation in the divine image is as a soul capable of love, sacrifice, and hope, not as a perfect human being, in mind or body. I want you to relate to me in that way, seeing me as God sees me."

Others have found that being seen "as God sees me" has even helped reverse their decline. One woman's thought-provoking journey of gaining a diviner sense of her identity shows her slowly regaining cognitive functions she had been losing, until her doctor finally reversed the Alzheimer's diagnosis (see 'My journey forward to complete health').

Encouraging a greater appreciation for the enduring, spiritual "self" and creating a culture of awareness, hope and compassion for both patient and caregiver is bringing, if not a complete cure at this stage, significant help and healing to many dealing with dementia, and possibly a much brighter future on the horizon.

This Carers' Week we celebrate the care that brings comfort and deep change.