Dementia Institute Director Curt Gritters reflects on navigating the dementia journey.
It was the summer of 1989, in Huntington Beach, California. The kid vacationing from West Michigan hopped out of the rear-facing seat in the station wagon and watched the surfers with amazement. What fun it must be to pick the right wave and ride it with style, sometimes with dolphins playing along! With bodyboard tucked under his arm, he raced into the waves, eager to give it a shot. Seconds later, he was sitting in the shallow surf, dazed, saltwater burning his sinuses, gritty sand in all the wrong places, reconsidering how gnarly surfing really was… when a second and third wave lent their perspective.
Today, with the hymn When Peace Like a River playing, the phrase “sea billows roll” brings back some childhood memories. To be fair, crashing waves were not “my lot” in life: eating Whoppers and tossing a frisbee with my dad moments later proved that “peace attended my way.”
Meanwhile, 50,000 of our neighbors in West Michigan are pummeled by dementia or the billows of caregiving. The battering over 8-20 years threatens to sink even the strongest. Singing “it is well, it is well with my soul” seems impossible when you’re gasping for air.
Is this you? Is this someone you know? Considering that one in ten older adults is living with dementia, and one in three of us will have dementia by the time our life here is finished, there’s a good chance each of us knows someone living with dementia.
Most don’t realize that life jackets are available. That respite boats are nearby. That some of our neighbors have taken lessons and are no longer afraid of the water. That, with one-on-one coaching, others have even gotten on surfboards and discovered joy in the very waves that seemed threatening.
The Dementia Institute takes dementia seriously. We’ve been in the waves for a few decades and respect their power. At the same time, we’ve witnessed thousands of smiles of inspired hope and renewed relationships.
What about you? If you’re interested in surfing lessons, we’ll probably recommend Huntington Beach. For dementia training and support, check out www.Dementia-Institute.org.