Amusing-musings.blog

I spent some time working in activities with end-of-life people thinking that my creativity combined with my education in human development would be a great combination to bring to the table. What I was not prepared for was the extreme illness that I would face while working there. I did not understand dementia entirely and was not prepared for what I encountered. The brain is such an amazing thing the way it operates. I had one resident who had a memory of playing the organ in a wedding and would get prepared for the wedding as if it were going to occur in the next day or two. She would get right down to the details of getting her sheet music ready, dressing up for the occasion and talk to me about the details of the couple. I had another resident that could do word finds and crossword puzzles but, could not communicate. I had some who were completely confused by what was going on and some that could function much better. I had some residents who would get visitors all the time and others that never really had any one visit. It was definitely a learning experience for me, and it made me realize that none of us really knows how long we have here. It was a very emotionally difficult and draining experience to watch those I worked with deteriorating before my eyes. They would often stop eating before the end of their life. Their bodies were shutting down knowing it would end soon. After working here, I decided that I needed to pursue other employment because it became too emotionally difficult for me to bear.